Marine Attack Squadron 144 (VMA-144) was a reserve

Douglas A-4 Skyhawk The Douglas A-4 Skyhawk is a single-seat subsonic carrier-capable light attack aircraft developed for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps in the early 1950s. The delta-winged, single turbojet engined Skyhawk was designed a ...

attack squadron in 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 ...

. Originally known as VMSB-144, the squadron saw its first combat in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

as part of the Cactus Air Force during the

Battle of Guadalcanal 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 ...

and also provided close air support during the Bougainville campaign (1943-1945). Following the war the squadron was deactivated but later became part of the Marine Air Reserve and was based out of

Naval Air Station Jacksonville Naval Air Station Jacksonville (NAS Jacksonville) is a large naval air station located approximately eight miles (13 km) south of the central business district of Jacksonville, Florida, United States., effective 2007-10-25 Location NAS Jac ...

and then

Naval Air Station Cecil Field Naval Air Station Cecil Field or NAS Cecil Field was a United States Navy air base, located in Duval County, Florida. Prior to October 1999, NAS Cecil Field was the largest military base in terms of acreage in the Jacksonville, Florida area. NA ...

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History

World War II

Marine Scout Bomber Squadron 144 (VMSB-144) was formed at

Naval Air Station San Diego Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (N ...

on September 7, 1942. They remained in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

for training until early 1943 when they departed for the South Pacific, travelling through Noumea and

Efate Efate (french: Éfaté) is an island in the Pacific Ocean which is part of the Shefa Province in Vanuatu. It is also known as Île Vate. Geography It is the most populous (approx. 66,000) island in Vanuatu. Efate's land area of makes it Vanu ...

, where the ground echelon remained. The squadron's flight echelon landed at Henderson Field on Guadalcanal on February 5, 1943. They returned from their first combat tour on March 12, 1943. The entire squadron returned to Guadalcanal on June 13, 1943. The flight echelon moved to the

Russell Islands :''See also Russell Island (disambiguation).'' The Russell Islands are two small islands ( Pavuvu and Mbanika), as well as several islets, of volcanic origin, in the Central Province of Solomon Islands. They are located approximately northwest o ...

for the month of July, returning to Henderson Field and then moving to Efate again. The squadron's flight echelon moved to Munda on October 15, 1943 and from November 1 to November 21, they provided close air support to troops during the

Battle of Bougainville The Bougainville campaign was a series of land and naval battles of the Pacific campaign of World War II between Allied forces and the Empire of Japan, named after the island of Bougainville. It was part of Operation Cartwheel, the Allied ...

. On January 12, 1944, the squadron boarded ship to begin their return to the United States. Dive bomber at Torokina on D-Day morning

The squadron relocated to Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, California and was redesignated as Marine Torpedo Bomber Squadron 144 (VMTB-144) on October 14, 1944. A month later, on November 5, they were again redesignated as VMTB-144(CVS) as they trained to operate from the Navy's

escort carriers The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slow type of aircraft ...

.Sherrod p.459. In December 1944, the squadron moved to

Marine Corps Air Station Mojave The Mojave Air and Space Port at Rutan Field is in Mojave, California, United States, at an elevation of . It is the first facility to be licensed in the United States for horizontal launches of reusable spacecraft, being certified as a spa ...

, California to continue training.Shettle p.112. During this time their designation was also reverted to VMTB-144. In June 1945, VMTB-144 moved to Marine Corps Air Station Santa Barbara, California where they stayed until August 12, 1945 when they reported aboard the . Following the end of the war, the squadron returned to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and was deactivated on December 9, 1945

Reserve years

Sometime after the war, the squadron was reactivated as Marine Attack Squadron 144 (VMA-144) and were part of the Marine Air Reserve and based out of

and then

. The squadron was decommissioned on October 31, 1965.

Notes

References

;Bibliography * * * ;Web
VMA-144 Skyhawk page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vma-144 144 Inactive units of the United States Marine Corps