Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 561 (VMM-561) was a medium-lift squadron of the

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 ...

flying the

Bell-Boeing V-22 Osprey The Bell Boeing V-22 Osprey is an American multi-mission, tiltrotor military aircraft with both vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and short takeoff and landing (STOL) capabilities. It is designed to combine the functionality of a convention ...

. Known as the " Pale Horse", it was part of

Marine Aircraft Group 16 Marine Aircraft Group 16 is a United States Marine Corps aviation unit based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar that is currently composed of four V-22 Osprey squadrons, four CH-53 Super Stallion squadrons, one Personnel Support Detachment, and ...

and based out of

Marine Corps Air Station Miramar Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (MCAS Miramar) , formerly Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Miramar and Naval Air Station (NAS) Miramar, is a United States Marine Corps installation that is home to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, which is the av ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

. They were scheduled to move to

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

in 2012. The squadron previously served as a training unit during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

but was previously deactivated with the retirement of the HUSS from active service.

History

Marine Medium Helicopter Squadron 561 (HMM-561) was activated on 31 January 1967, to provide refresher training to UH-34 Sea Horse pilots and crews heading to

Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...

. The squadron, based at

Marine Corps Air Facility Santa Ana Marine Corps Air Station Tustin (IATA: NTK, ICAO: KNTK, FAA LID: NTK) is a former United States Navy and United States Marine Corps air station, located in Tustin, California. History The Air Station was established in 1942 by the Uni ...

, fell under the command of

Marine Aircraft Group 56 Marine is an adjective meaning of or pertaining to the sea or ocean. Marine or marines may refer to: Ocean * Maritime (disambiguation) * Marine art * Marine biology * Marine debris * Marine habitats * Marine life * Marine pollution Military ...

and the

3rd Marine Aircraft Wing The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (abbreviated as 3rd MAW) is the major west coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps. It is headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, in San Diego, California and provides the aviation combat el ...

. Undermanned from the start, the unit remained in cadre status until 9 May 1968 when they were formally stood up. In addition to training, the squadron's mission also included conducting local

Search and Rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

missions, providing VIP transport, and other commitments as required by local commands. Starting in January 1969, UH-34 deployments started to slow down as the Marine Corps transitioned its remaining squadrons to the

CH-46 Sea Knight The Boeing Vertol CH-46 Sea Knight is a medium-lift tandem-rotor transport helicopter powered by twin turboshaft engines. It was designed by Vertol and manufactured by Boeing Vertol following Vertol's acquisition by Boeing. Development of th ...

. The squadron was decommissioned on 27 October 1969 and was the last active UH-34 squadron in the

Fleet Marine Force The United States Fleet Marine Forces (FMF) are combined general- and special-purpose forces within the United States Department of the Navy that perform offensive amphibious or expeditionary warfare and defensive maritime employment. The Fleet ...

. Squadron members were absorbed by the other helicopter communities or given the Marine Air Reserve Training Detachment (MARTD) of their choice as a next duty station. The squadron was reactivated as VMM-561 on 2 December 2010, after 18 months as a cadre unit. VMM-561 was deactivated on July 6, 2012 and replaced at Miramar by

VMM-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 ...

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Unit award

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. VMM-561 was presented with the following awards and

campaign streamer Campaign streamers are decorations attached to military flags to recognize particular achievements or events of a military unit or service. Attached to the headpiece of the assigned flag, the streamer often is an inscribed ribbon with the n ...

References

;Notes ;Bibliography * ;Web * *

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hmm-561 VMM561 Inactive units of the United States Marine Corps

History

Unit award

See also

References

External links