1st Marine Aircraft Wing

The 1st Marine Aircraft Wing is an aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps that serves as the Aviation Combat Element of the III Marine Expeditionary Force. The wing is headquartered at Camp Foster on the island of Okinawa, Japan. Activated in 1940, the wing has seen heavy combat operations during World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.

1st Marine Aircraft Wing
1st MAW insignia
ActiveJuly 7, 1941 - present
CountryUnited States
BranchUnited States Marine Corps
TypeMarine Aircraft Wing
RoleConduct air operations in support of the Fleet Marine Forces
Part ofIII Marine Expeditionary Force
Garrison/HQCamp Foster
Nickname(s)1st MAW
EngagementsWorld War II
* Battle of Guadalcanal
* Philippines campaign (1944–45)
Korean War
Vietnam War
Commanders
Commanding GeneralBrigadier General Christopher A. McPhillips
Assistant Wing CommanderBrigadier General Sean M. Salene
Sergeant MajorSergeant Major Michael J. Pritchard
Command Master ChiefCommand Master Chief Curtis D. Blunt
Staff SecretaryMajor Jon D. Stiebner
Notable
commanders		LtGen. Louis E. Woods
Gen. Roy S. Geiger
LtGen. John F. Goodman
LtGen.Albert D. Cooley

Mission

Conduct air operations in support of the Fleet Marine Forces to include offensive air support, antiair warfare, assault support, aerial reconnaissance including active and passive electronic countermeasures (ECM), and control of aircraft and missiles. As a collateral function, the Wing may participate as an integral component of Naval Aviation in the execution of such other Navy functions as the Fleet Commander may direct.

Subordinate units

1st MAW consists of 5 subordinate groups, a headquarters squadron and a liaison group:[1]

Structure 1st Marine Aircraft Wing

Locations

Units of 1st MAW are located in the Pacific Region at the following bases:

History

World War II
Marine F4U

In late 1940, Congress authorized a naval air fleet of fifteen thousand aircraft. The Marine Corps was allotted a percentage of these planes to be formed into 2 air wings with 32 operational squadrons. On the advice of Navy and Marine advisors returning from observing the war in Europe these numbers were doubled very soon after. It was under this expansion program that the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing was activated at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, on July 7, 1941. The First Marine Aircraft Group which was the largest east coast aviation unit in the Marines at the time, became its first component.[2] Although a new wing, it is considered an unofficial descendant of the Northern Bombing Group of World War I.[3]

Following the attacks on Pearl Harbor, the wing transferred to Naval Air Station San Diego, California, on December 10, 1941, and then to Camp Kearny on December 31. The first deployment for 1st MAW came in August 1942 when forward elements of the Wing arrived on Guadalcanal and made up the Cactus Air Force supporting the 1st Marine Division during the Battle of Guadalcanal.[4]

Korean War

At the beginning of the Korean War, the initial deployment of Marines was a provisional brigade activated on July 7, 1950 — the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade — formed from the 1st Marine Division and the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. Its core consisted of two units — a regimental combat team from the 5th Marine Regiment and Marine Aircraft Group 33 (MAG-33). Their job was to provide close air support, resupply, and Medevac for Marine ground forces.

In late-June 1952, 75 aircraft from 1st MAW participated in the attack on the Sui-ho Dam which were strikes aimed at the hydroelectric plants in North Korea.[5] The Wing's Chief of Staff Frank Schwable was shot down in July 1952 and while a prisoner of war confessed to having participated in germ warfare. He was eventually cleared of all charges, but his case prompted a review of training and expectations of prisoners-of-war.[6]

Two 1st MAW aircraft groups, MAG-33 and MAG-12, and the 1st Antiaircraft Artillery Gun Battalion served during the course of the war. The wing flew 127,496 sorties of which over 40,000 were close air support and Marine helicopters evacuated more than 9,800 wounded personnel[7][8]

Vietnam

From April 1962, when HMM-362 flew into the Mekong Delta to set up operations at the Sóc Trăng Airfield, through April 1975, when helicopters of HMM-164 evacuated the last Americans from the US Embassy, Saigon. While early missions involved Marine helicopters providing logistical support for South Vietnam, this role quickly expanded when 1st MAW pilots and crewmen were called upon to perform their traditional role of providing close air support for Marine combat units as American involvement in the war escalated.

Helicopters played an extensive role in air operations in Vietnam, as Marine pilots flew CH-34s and later CH-46s and CH-53s to transport Marines into landing zones near suspected enemy concentrations, and to evacuate the wounded following combat engagements. Helicopters, supplemented by C-130 transports where there were landing strips, were also used to re-supply Marines in the field at remote outposts. Other Marine pilots flew UH-1E Hueys and AH-1 Cobras. Many of these choppers provided reconnaissance and armed air cover for combat air operations.

The buildup of American troops resulted in the deployment of the Marine Corps' attack and fighter aircraft including the Douglas A-4 and the McDonnell F4B, as well as the maintenance, ordnance, and other support personnel necessary.

Global War on Terror

HMH 463 has deployed to support the Operation Enduring Freedom Mission in Afghanistan in 2009.

Current aircraft

Fixed-wing aircraft

Rotary-wing aircraft

  • AH-1W SuperCobra
  • AH-1Z Viper
  • UH-1Y Venom
  • CH-53E Super Stallion

Tiltrotor Aircraft

UAVs

Unit awards

A unit citation or commendation is an award bestowed upon an organization for the action cited. Members of the unit who participated in said actions are allowed to wear on their uniforms the awarded unit citation. The 1st Marine Aircraft Wing has been presented with the following awards:[9]

Streamer Award Year(s) Additional Info
Presidential Unit Citation Streamer (Navy) with three Bronze Stars 1942, 1950, 1951, 1965-1967 Guadalcanal, Korea, Vietnam
Presidential Unit Citation Streamer (Army) Streamer 1950 Korea
Navy Unit Commendation Streamer 1952-1953 Korea
Meritorious Unit Commendation Streamer 2000-2002
American Defense Service Streamer 1941-1945 World War II
Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Streamer with one Silver Star

World War II Victory Streamer 1941–1945 Pacific War
China Service Streamer

Korean Service Streamer with two Silver Stars 1950-1953 Korea
National Defense Service Streamer with three Bronze Stars 1951–1954, 1961–1974, 1990–1995, 2001–present Korean War, Vietnam War, Gulf War, War on Terrorism
Armed Forces Expeditionary Streamer

Vietnam Service Streamer with two Silver Stars and three Bronze Star

Global War on Terrorism Service Streamer 2001–present
Philippine Liberation Streamer 1945
Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Streamer 1945
Korean Presidential Unit Citation Streamer 1950
Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm Streamer 1965–1971
Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation Civil Actions Streamer 1965–1971
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See also

References
  1. "2010 Marine Aviation Plan" (PDF). Marines. 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 31, 2010. Retrieved 2015-12-08.
  2. DeChant
  3. Rottman USMC WWII OOB, p. 430.
  4. Sherrod History of Marine Corps Aviation, p. 438.
  5. Field Jr., James A. (2000-06-21). "Part 2. March 1952—February 1953: Stalemate". History of United States Naval Operations: Korea. Department of the Navy - Naval Historical Center. Retrieved 2007-12-19.
  6. New York Times: "Officers to Study 'Brainwash' Issue," August 23, 1954, accessed February 16, 2012
  7. Mersky USMC Aviation, p. 191.
  8. "Brief History of the Marine Corps in the Korean War". United States of America - Korean War Commemoration. Marine Corps History and Museums Division. Archived from the original on 2007-07-16. Retrieved 2009-04-22.
  9. "Lineage and Honors of 1st MAW" (PDF). Retrieved 28 June 2020.

Bibliography
 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps.
Print
  • De Chant, John A. (1947). Devilbirds. New York: Harper and Brothers Publishers.
  • Mersky, Peter B. (1983). U.S. Marine Corps Aviation - 1912 to the Present. Nautical and Aviation Publishing Company of America. ISBN 0-933852-39-8.
  • Rottman, Gordon L. (2002). U.S. Marine Corps World War II Order of Battle - Ground and Air Units in the Pacific War, 1939 - 1945.’’. Greenwood Press. ISBN 0-313-31906-5.
  • Sherrod, Robert (1952). History of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II. Washington, D.C.: Combat Forces Press.
  • Simmons, Edwin H. (2003). The United States Marines: A History, Fourth Edition. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-59114-790-5.
Web
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