Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 366 (HMH-366) is a

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 combi ...

helicopter squadron consisting of

CH-53E Super Stallion The Sikorsky CH-53E Super Stallion is a heavy-lift helicopter operated by the United States military. As the Sikorsky S-80, it was developed from the CH-53 Sea Stallion, mainly by adding a third engine, adding a seventh blade to the main rotor, ...

heavy transport helicopters. The squadron, known as the "Hammerheads", is based at

Marine Corps Air Station New River Marine Corps Air Station New River is a United States Marine Corps helicopter and tilt-rotor base in Jacksonville, North Carolina, in the eastern part of the state. In 1972, the airfield was named McCutcheon Field for General Keith B. McCutcheon ...

and falls under the command of

Marine Aircraft Group 29 Marine Aircraft Group 29 (MAG-29) is a United States Marine Corps aviation unit based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina. The group is currently composed of four CH-53E Super Stallion squadrons including the Fleet Replacement ...

and the

2nd Marine Aircraft Wing The 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (2nd MAW) is the major east coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps and is headquartered in Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina. The Wing provides the aviation combat element for the ...

. The squadron's tail code is “HH.” At their activation on September 30, 2008, the squadron had 130 Marines and 8 aircraft on-hand which grew to more than 300 Marines and 16 aircraft in 2009.

Mission

Provide

assault support Assault Support is one of the six functions of United States Marine Corps aviation and comprises those actions required to airlift personnel, supplies or equipment into or within a battle area by helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. It provides th ...

transport of combat troops, supplies and equipment during expeditionary, joint or combined operations. Be prepared for short-notice, worldwide employment in support of

Marine Air-Ground Task Force Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF, pronounced MAG-TAF) is a term used by the United States Marine Corps to describe the principal organization for all missions across the range of military operations. MAGTFs are a balanced air-ground, combined ar ...

operations.

History

Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron-366 (HMH-366) was originally activated on September 30, 1994 at MCAS Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii as part of Aviation Support Element Kaneohe (ASEK). As the fourth active CH-53D Sea Stallion squadron, it was the only Hawaiian home-grown helicopter squadron in active service in the Marine Corps. The squadron's callsign, "Hammerhead," was inspired by the fact that Kaneohe Bay is home to the world's largest

hammerhead shark The hammerhead sharks are a group of sharks that form the family Sphyrnidae, so named for the unusual and distinctive structure of their heads, which are flattened and laterally extended into a "hammer" shape called a cephalofoil. Most hammerhe ...

population, and the original unit patch featured a hammerhead shark leaping over an airborne CH-53D. While active in Hawaii, the squadron deployed to the

Pacific Missile Range Facility The Pacific Missile Range Facility, Barking Sands is a U.S. naval facility and airport located five nautical miles (9 km) northwest of the central business district of Kekaha, in Kauai County, Hawaii, United States. PMRF is the world's larg ...

(PMRF), Barking Sands on Kauai, the

Pohakuloa Training Area Pōhakuloa Training Area (PTA) is a US military training base located on the high plateau between Mauna Loa, Mauna Kea and the Hualālai volcanic mountains of the island of Hawaii. It includes a small military airstrip known as Bradshaw Army Airfi ...

on the Big Island, and completed a successful mainland deployment in support of Combined Arms Exercises (CAX) 9-98 and 10-98, and Weapons and Tactics Instructors Course (WTI) 2-00. The squadron also supported a four aircraft deployment to

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

for presidential support of President Clinton's visit to the country. On 1 October 2000, with a limited number of available CH-53Ds in the Marine Corps, and no addition CH-53Ds being produced, the squadron was de-activated as part of a realignment plan to redistribute the units’ personnel and aircraft to the remaining three CH-53D squadrons in Hawaii (

HMH-362 Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 362 (VMM-362) is a United States Marine Corps squadron that operates MV-22 Osprey. The squadron, known as the "Ugly Angels", was reactivated on 17 August 2018 at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California. Missi ...

HMH-363 Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 363 (VMM-363) is a United States Marine Corps tiltrotor squadron consisting of MV-22 Osprey, MV-22B Ospreys. The squadron, known as the "Lucky Red Lions", is based at Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, MCB Hawa ...

HMH-463 Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 463 (HMH-463) was a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of CH-53E Super Stallion transport helicopters. The squadron, also known as "Pegasus", was last based at Marine Corps Air Station Kane ...

), thereby increasing the Primary Authorized Aircraft (PAA) of those squadrons from eight to ten aircraft. The squadron was reactivated on 30 September 2008 as part of the Marine Corp's expansion. Since then the Squadron has participated in the last HMH rotation in support of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used synonymously by the U.S. government for both the War in Afghanistan (2001–2014) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response to the September 11 at ...

in 2014 and

Exercise Trident Juncture Exercise is a body activity that enhances or maintains physical fitness and overall health and wellness. It is performed for various reasons, to aid growth and improve strength, develop muscles and the cardiovascular system, hone athletic s ...

which took place in

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

in 2018. (HMH-366) deactivation ceremony at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina, Dec. 16, 2022.

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. HMH-366 has been presented with the following award:

References

;Notes ;Bibliography ;Web * *

External links

HMH-366's official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hmh-366 H366

Mission

History

Unit awards

See also

References

External links