“This shoot allows us to know our weapon inside and out. We could do notional firing and practice our guns all day.”
“Until we get to shoot rounds out of it, we are not going to know how the gun will feel in a combat situation.”
Operate mortars to provide indirect fire support to infantry units. Calculate firing data and maintain mortar systems.
ASVAB GT: 90
Catalog listing, not a contract offer. Confirm with a recruiter.
Mortarmen provide the infantry battalion's organic indirect fire support and work as a tight, drilled crew. Days involve gun drills, fire mission procedures, ammunition handling, and maintenance of the mortar system and its optics. You carry heavy loads, because mortar systems and ammunition are distributed across the section during movement. Live fire exercises demand precise coordination between the fire direction center and each gun position. Field time is frequent, and the section trains to emplace, fire, and displace rapidly.
You learn gunnery mathematics, ballistics fundamentals, and the fire direction procedures behind accurate indirect fire. Ammunition handling, fuze setting, and range safety are taught to an exacting standard. The job builds map reading, land navigation, and target location skills. You gain communications proficiency, since fire missions depend on clear, correct radio procedure. Infantry fundamentals including marksmanship and patrolling remain part of the skill set.
The job builds physical strength and endurance, given the weight the section carries. You develop precision under time pressure, because a fire mission is both fast and unforgiving of error. It teaches disciplined teamwork, since the gun only works when every crew position performs correctly. Mortarmen tend to become people comfortable doing exacting mental work while physically exhausted. You also gain early leadership experience running a gun or section.
The direct translation is limited, so the practical question is what these Marines do next. Construction, surveying, and heavy equipment work suit the combination of physical capability and comfort with applied mathematics. Law enforcement, fire service, and emergency management recruit from mortar and infantry backgrounds for the composure and teamwork. Defense contractors hire former mortarmen as live-fire instructors, range safety officers, and training support staff, which is consulting work built directly on the specialty. Industrial roles involving explosives, blasting, or hazardous materials value the procedural discipline, and the GI Bill supports moves into engineering, logistics, and business for those who want a different direction entirely.
Published personal accounts with source links. Each describes an individual experience, not a typical assignment or a guarantee of your own experience.
“This shoot allows us to know our weapon inside and out. We could do notional firing and practice our guns all day.”
“Until we get to shoot rounds out of it, we are not going to know how the gun will feel in a combat situation.”
Quotes are from U.S. government public-domain news stories (DVIDS, army.mil and other official sources). Individuals and units are named as reported at time of publication.
You open the day by assembling and checking the mortar system and rounds with your gun crew. The day is spent drilling fire missions, calculating firing data, and emplacing the mortar to deliver indirect fire in support of the infantry. You move between the gun line and the fire direction element, refining speed and accuracy on every mission.
No suitable exact-MOS or related career-field video has been verified for this page yet. No unrelated video or search-results page is substituted.
$43,902–$74,948
2026 basic pay only; the same grade and service time pay the same across jobs. Promotions are assumed, not promised. Excludes allowances, bonuses and special pays.
Possibilities for serving Marines, including those in support roles—not guaranteed admission or awards. Individual eligibility, assignment, selection, available training or competition places and successful qualification apply.
Earned skill levels: tan, gray, green, brown and black belt. Applies across combat and support specialties.
Belts require documented training, sustainment and performance testing under authorized instructors. Higher belts have additional prerequisites, including applicable grade and professional-education requirements; neither promotion nor elapsed service awards a belt. Confirm the current requirements for the next belt with your instructor.
Sources reviewed . Confirm current course and badge requirements with official school guidance and your unit.
For Marines 0341 Mortarman, official service-wide guidance and any exact feeder-list matches are distinguished below from unverified specialty-specific requirements. Ranks are not separate jobs, and these possibilities are not guaranteed promotions or available contracts.
Examples of higher service ranks
These are service-wide rank names, not a verified promotion ladder for this specialty. Examples are not exhaustive; appointments sharing a pay grade are not additional promotion steps.
Official military rank referenceMarine NCO grades are E-4 and E-5; staff NCO grades are E-6 through E-9. At E-8 and E-9, first sergeant/sergeant major and master sergeant/master gunnery sergeant have distinct leadership roles. Warrant and commissioned officers are separate career tracks. This service-wide structure is not a verified promotion ceiling for this MOS.
Marine Corps ranks and career-track distinctionsService-level application reference—not a verified next step for this listing
The FY27 regular warrant program requires technical and professional qualifications for the requested warrant MOS and selection. A listed warrant destination does not establish an enlisted feeder match. The February 2026 deadline has passed; this announcement documents a selection route, not a currently open opportunity.
Marine FY27 regular warrant selection announcementSpecialty-specific advancement, senior assignments, and eligibility for a different personnel category have not been verified for this listing. No feeder eligibility or automatic transition to another specialty is implied.
Advancement depends on current service rules, performance, required education, qualifications, selection, and authorized positions—not simply years served. Confirm current requirements with an official recruiter or career counselor.
Related military jobs below are for exploration, not promised progression or confirmed transfer paths.
Sources reviewed 2026-10-03. This is a partial evidence review, not verification of every advancement route for this specialty. Source retrieval dates do not replace policy effective dates.
Career-field mappings, not automatic qualifications. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024 national medians). O*NET links explain each occupation; military experience does not guarantee a job or salary.
Operate mortars to provide indirect fire support to infantry units. Calculate firing data and maintain mortar systems.
Mortarmen provide the infantry battalion's organic indirect fire support and work as a tight, drilled crew. Days involve gun drills, fire mission procedures, ammunition handling, and maintenance of the mortar system and its optics. You carry heavy loads, because mortar systems and ammunition are distributed across the section during movement. Live fire exercises demand precise coordination between the fire direction center and each gun position. Field time is frequent, and the section trains to emplace, fire, and displace rapidly.
You learn gunnery mathematics, ballistics fundamentals, and the fire direction procedures behind accurate indirect fire. Ammunition handling, fuze setting, and range safety are taught to an exacting standard. The job builds map reading, land navigation, and target location skills. You gain communications proficiency, since fire missions depend on clear, correct radio procedure. Infantry fundamentals including marksmanship and patrolling remain part of the skill set.
The direct translation is limited, so the practical question is what these Marines do next. Construction, surveying, and heavy equipment work suit the combination of physical capability and comfort with applied mathematics. Law enforcement, fire service, and emergency management recruit from mortar and infantry backgrounds for the composure and teamwork. Defense contractors hire former mortarmen as live-fire instructors, range safety officers, and training support staff, which is consulting work built directly on the specialty. Industrial roles involving explosives, blasting, or hazardous materials value the procedural discipline, and the GI Bill supports moves into engineering, logistics, and business for those who want a different direction entirely.
ASVAB GT: 90. This is the catalog's listed requirement, not an individual eligibility decision. Confirm the current standard and any exceptions with the service.
This specialty can be pursued through an initial enlistment, subject to eligibility and available contracts. Confirm the current status of this specific classification with an official recruiter.
Catalog sources consulted: 2026-09-26. This is not an entry-by-entry verification date. No record-specific verification date is recorded. Occupation audit evidence reviewed: 2026-09-26; this does not re-verify every requirement.
Official branch occupation evidence
Occupation identified. This occupation was identified in the cited source. This does not verify requirements, benefits, or a current opening.
NAVMC 1200.1L, FY26 Military Occupational Specialties Manual (effective October 1, 2025), chapter 1 · reviewed 2026-09-26
Confirmed. Catalog evidence is not an inventory of open contracts.
No dated public inventory confirmed a currently open recruiting contract for this role. This does not mean there are no openings. Confirm current eligibility and offers with an official recruiter.
Deployment likelihood: Higher*
* Estimated. Rank progression and specialty-pay eligibility are illustrative assumptions. Deployment likelihood, when shown, is inferred from similar specialties in the branch and career field, not a published specialty deployment rate.
Descriptions may change. No military role is free from risk of injury or death, including non-combat work. Catalog review dates do not establish current openings or re-verification of every requirement.
Recruiting signals reflect what each branch published on the dates shown. They are not offers, and they do not mean a contract is open for you. Eligibility depends on your ASVAB scores, medical qualification, security clearance eligibility, and ship date. Confirm everything with an official recruiter. See our Disclaimer and Terms.