Marine Wing Support Group 17 (MWSG-17) was 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 ...

aviation ground support unit based at Marine Corps Base Camp Butler, Japan. They were composed of two squadrons that provided the

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. A ...

(1st MAW) and

III Marine Expeditionary Force III Marine Expeditionary Force (III MEF) is a formation of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force of the United States Marine Corps. It is forward-deployed and able to rapidly conduct operations across the spectrum from humanitarian assistance and ...

with complete airfield operation services (less air traffic control), engineer and transportation support, medical assistance, food services, security support, and other direct combat and combat service support to the Aviation Combat Element. The Group was disbanded on 4 June 2012 and its subordinate units passed to other commands in

Mission

Provide the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing with organic and deployable aviation ground support to contingencies and exercises within the USPACOM area of responsibility.

Subordinate units

Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 Marine Wing Support Squadron 171 (MWSS-171) is an aviation ground support unit of the United States Marine Corps. Known as "The Sentinels", they are based out of Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. The squadron is part of Marine Aircraft Gro ...

Marine Wing Support Squadron 172 Marine Wing Support Squadron 172 (MWSS 172) is an aviation support unit of the United States Marine Corps's 1st Marine Aircraft Wing. Known as the "Firebirds", they are based out of Camp Foster, Okinawa, Japan. Previously part of Marine Wing Su ...

* Personnel Support Detachment 17

History

Marine Wing Support Group 17 was activated on July 1, 1953 at Itami, Japan and designated as Marine Wing Service Group 17. Later that same year, MWSG-17 was relocated to

Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni is a United States Marine Corps air station located in the Nishiki river delta, southeast of Iwakuni Station in the city of Iwakuni, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. History The Japanese government bought a large portion of what is today MCAS Iw ...

, Japan where its Marines served until 1966. That year it was re-designated as Marine Wing Support Group 17 and deployed to the

Republic of Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of t ...

. MWSG-17 actively participated in the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by 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 Vietnam a ...

from June 1966 until August 1970 while operating from Da Nang Air Base, Vietnam. During this period, the Group earned a Presidential Unit Citation as well as a Meritorious Unit Commendation. In the summer of 1970, MWSG-17 returned home from Vietnam to MCAS Iwakuni. Nine years later, MWSG-17 moved 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 ...

, Japan and took up residence at

Camp Foster Camp Foster, formerly known as Camp Zukeran ( ja, キャンプ・フォスター), is a United States Marine Corps camp located in Ginowan City with portions overlapping into Okinawa City, Chatan town and Kitanakagusuku village in the Japane ...

. The Group was disbanded on 4 June 2012 and its subordinate units passed to other commands in

External links

MWSG-17's official website

References

{{1stMAW United States Marine Corps wing support groups Inactive units of the United States Marine Corps

Mission

Subordinate units

History

See also

External links

References