MAG-13
Marine Aircraft Group 13 is a United States Marine Corps aviation unit based at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma that is currently composed of one McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II squadron, three Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II squadrons, an unmanned aerial vehicle squadron, a maintenance and logistics squadron, and a wing support squadron. The group falls under the command of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the I Marine Expeditionary Force. Mission Provide air support to Marine Air-Ground Task Force commanders. Subordinate units F-35B Lightning II Squadrons * VMFA-122 "Flying Leathernecks" * VMFA-211 "Wake Island Avengers" * VMFA-214 "Black Sheep" * VMFA-225 "Vikings" Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron * VMU-1 Aviation Logistics Squadron * MALS-13 Marine Wing Support Squadron * MWSS-371 “Sandsharks” History World War II Marine Aircraft Group 13 was activated 1 March 1942, in San Diego, California. A week later the group's forward echelon was en route to Samoa. The fi ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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VMFA-211
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 211 (VMFA-211) is a United States Marine Corps fighter attack squadron, currently consisting of F-35B Lightning II stealth STOVL strike fighter jets. Known as the "Wake Island Avengers" and the "Bastion Defenders", the squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 13 (MAG-13) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW). Mission VMFA-211 is an F-35B Lightning II squadron assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 13, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. Its mission is to intercept and destroy enemy aircraft under all weather conditions and attack and destroy surface targets in support of Marine expeditionary forces. History Early history VMFA-211 was commissioned on January 1, 1937 when Marine Fighting Squadron 4 (VF-4M) at Naval Air Station San Diego, California. Although it was the second time a VF-4M had existed, the previous one was decommissioned in 1931 and it was not considered the same squadr ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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VMFA-122
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 122 (VMFA-122) is a United States Marine Corps fighter attack squadron flying the F-35B Lightning II. The squadron is based out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, AZ and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 13 (MAG-13) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW). The squadron nickname is the "Flying Leathernecks," and their traditional radio call sign is "Nickel". On November 14, 2017, VMFA-122 opened a new chapter of their history, transitioning from the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18C Hornet to the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning II and moving from MCAS Beaufort and MAG-31, 2nd MAW to MCAS Yuma and MAG-13, 3rd MAW. Mission Conduct anti-air warfare and offensive air support operations in support of Fleet Marine Forces from advance bases, expeditionary airfields, and aircraft carriers, and to conduct such other air operations as may be directed. History World War II Marine Fighter Squadron 122 (VMF-122) was commissioned on March 1, 1942 at ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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VMU-1
Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 1 (VMU-1) is an unmanned aerial vehicle squadron in the United States Marine Corps that operates the MQ-9A Reaper. They are based out of Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona and provide reconnaissance, surveillance, and target acquisition for the I Marine Expeditionary Force. They fall under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 13 and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. History Early years On January 21, 1987, 1st Remotely Piloted Vehicle Company was activated at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center (MCAGCC) Twentynine Palms, California as part of the 7th Marine Amphibious Brigade. On June 24, 1987, 3rd RPV Company was activated at (MCAGCC) also as part of the 7th Marine Amphibious Brigade. On December 15, 1989, 1st and 3rd RPV Companies were reassigned to 1st Surveillance, Reconnaissance, and Intelligence Group. Operation Desert Storm From January 29 through March 3, 1990, 1st RPV Company operated from LaSalle County Airport in Cotulla ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pago Pago International Airport
Pago Pago International Airport , also known as Tafuna Airport, is a public airport located 7 miles (11.3 km) southwest of the central business district of Pago Pago, in the village and plains of Tafuna on the island of Tutuila in American Samoa, an unincorporated territory of the United States. 3,099 flights arrived at Pago Pago International Airport in 2014, down from 3,665 in 2013. Incoming flights carried 55,728 passengers in 2014, while flights carrying 57,355 passengers took off from the airport. 1.8 million pounds of cargo and 1.3 million pounds of mail were brought in by commercial carriers. History Tafuna Airfield The site and location of the current airport was originally known as Tafuna Airfield. It was part of U.S. Naval Station Tutuila - Samoa Defense Group Area and was partially constructed before war broke out in the Pacific on December 7, 1941. Two airstrips were completed and opened on March 17, 1942. The airfield was first utilized on March 19, 1942 b ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Marine Corps Air Station Yuma
Marine Corps Air Station Yuma or MCAS Yuma is a United States Marine Corps air station. It is the home of multiple squadrons of F-35B Lightning IIs of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 (MAWTS-1), Marine Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 (VMX-1) and Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401 (VMFT-401), an air combat adversary squadron of the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing of the Marine Corps Reserve. It is a designated Superfund site due to a number of soil and groundwater contaminants, including asbestos. The station is from the city of Yuma, Arizona. A joint use civilian-military airport, MCAS Yuma shares airfield facilities with Yuma International Airport and occupies approximately , most of which is flat desert. History Air Force use In 1928, the federal government purchased near Yuma at the recommendation of Colonel Benjamin F. Fly. Temporary dirt runways were installed for usage by military and civilian planes. It was called ' ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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VMFA-214
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 214 (VMFA-214) is a United States Marine Corps attack squadron consisting of Lockheed Martin F-35B STOVL jets. It is currently in the process of transitioning from its fleet of AV-8B Harrier (V/STOL) jets. The squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona and is under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 13 (MAG-13) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW). The squadron is best known as the ''Black Sheep'' of World War II fame and for one of its commanding officers, Colonel Gregory "Pappy" Boyington, whose memoirs also inspired the 1970s television show '' Baa Baa Black Sheep,'' later syndicated as ''Black Sheep Squadron,'' which dramatized the squadron's exploits during the war. Mission Provide offensive air support, armed reconnaissance, and air defense for Marine expeditionary forces. History World War II The unit was originally commissioned as Marine Fighter Squadron 214 (VMF-214) on July 1, 1942, at Marine Corps Air Sta ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through combined arms, implementing its own infantry, artillery, aerial, and special operations forces. The U.S. Marine Corps is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. The Marine Corps has been part of the U.S. Department of the Navy since 30 June 1834 with its sister service, the United States Navy. The USMC operates installations on land and aboard sea-going amphibious warfare ships around the world. Additionally, several of the Marines' tactical aviation squadrons, primarily Marine Fighter Attack squadrons, are also embedded in Navy carrier air wings and operate from the aircraft carriers. The history of the Marine Corps began when two battalions of Continental Marines were formed on 10 November 1775 in Philadelphia as ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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F-35B Lightning II
The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather stealth multirole combat aircraft that is intended to perform both air superiority and strike missions. It is also able to provide electronic warfare and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance capabilities. Lockheed Martin is the prime F-35 contractor, with principal partners Northrop Grumman and BAE Systems. The aircraft has three main variants: the conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) F-35A, the short take-off and vertical-landing (STOVL) F-35B, and the carrier-based (CV/ CATOBAR) F-35C. The aircraft descends from the Lockheed Martin X-35, which in 2001 beat the Boeing X-32 to win the Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) program. Its development is principally funded by the United States, with additional funding from program partner countries from NATO and close U.S. allies, including the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Italy, Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, an ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Guadalcanal Campaign
The Guadalcanal campaign, also known as the Battle of Guadalcanal and codenamed Operation Watchtower by American forces, was a military campaign fought between 7 August 1942 and 9 February 1943 on and around the island of Guadalcanal in the Pacific theater of World War II. It was the first major land offensive by Allied forces against the Empire of Japan. On 7 August 1942, Allied forces, predominantly United States Marines, landed on Guadalcanal, Tulagi, and Florida in the southern Solomon Islands, with the objective of using Guadalcanal and Tulagi as bases in supporting a campaign to eventually capture or neutralize the major Japanese base at Rabaul on New Britain. The Japanese defenders, who had occupied those islands since May 1942, were outnumbered and overwhelmed by the Allies, who captured Tulagi and Florida, as well as the airfield – later named Henderson Field – that was under construction on Guadalcanal. Surprised by the Allied offensive, the Japanese made ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Battle Of Midway
The Battle of Midway was a major naval battle in the Pacific Theater of World War II that took place on 4–7 June 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor and one month after the Battle of the Coral Sea. The U.S. Navy under Admirals Chester W. Nimitz, Frank J. Fletcher, and Raymond A. Spruance defeated an attacking fleet of the Imperial Japanese Navy under Admirals Isoroku Yamamoto, Chūichi Nagumo, and Nobutake Kondō north of Midway Atoll, inflicting devastating damage on the Japanese fleet. Military historian John Keegan called it "the most stunning and decisive blow in the history of naval warfare", while naval historian Craig Symonds called it "one of the most consequential naval engagements in world history, ranking alongside Salamis, Trafalgar, and Tsushima Strait, as both tactically decisive and strategically influential". Hoping to lure the American aircraft carriers into a trap and occupying Midway was part of an overall "barrier" strategy to extend ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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American Samoa
American Samoa ( sm, Amerika Sāmoa, ; also ' or ') is an unincorporated territory of the United States located in the South Pacific Ocean, southeast of the island country of Samoa. Its location is centered on . It is east of the International Date Line, while Samoa is west of the Line. The total land area is , slightly more than Washington, D.C. American Samoa is the southernmost territory of the United States and one of two U.S. territories south of the Equator, along with the uninhabited Jarvis Island. Tuna products are the main exports, and the main trading partner is the rest of the United States. American Samoa consists of five main islands and two coral atolls. The largest and most populous island is Tutuila, with the Manuʻa Islands, Rose Atoll and Swains Island also included in the territory. All islands except for Swains Island are part of the Samoan Islands, west of the Cook Islands, north of Tonga, and some south of Tokelau. To the west are the islands of the Wall ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono and Apolima); and several smaller, uninhabited islands, including the Aleipata Islands (Nu'utele, Nu'ulua, Fanuatapu and Namua). Samoa is located west of American Samoa, northeast of Tonga (closest foreign country), northeast of Fiji, east of Wallis and Futuna, southeast of Tuvalu, south of Tokelau, southwest of Hawaii, and northwest of Niue. The capital city is Apia. The Lapita culture, Lapita people discovered and settled the Samoan Islands around 3,500 years ago. They developed a Samoan language and Samoan culture, Samoan cultural identity. Samoa is a Unitary state, unitary Parliamentary system, parliamentary democracy with 11 Administrative divisions of Samoa, administrative divisions. It is a sovereign state and a member of the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |