Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 (VMFA-121), also known as the "Green Knights", 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 ...

aircraft squadron operating the

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 elect ...

. The squadron is based at

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 I ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and falls under the command of

Marine Aircraft Group 12 Marine Aircraft Group 12 (MAG-12) is an active air group of the United States Marine Corps, tasked with providing fighter and assault support aircraft. It is currently part of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (1st MAW), itself an integral part of t ...

(MAG-12) and 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. Activ ...

(1st MAW). Their tail code is ''VK'' and their radio call sign is "Combat".

History

World War II

Marine Fighting Squadron 121 (VMF-121) was activated on June 24, 1941. The Green Knights began combat operations flying the

F4F Wildcat The Grumman F4F Wildcat is an American carrier-based fighter aircraft that entered service in 1940 with the United States Navy, and the British Royal Navy where it was initially known as the Martlet. First used by the British in the North Atlan ...

and later the

F4U Corsair The Vought F4U Corsair is an American fighter aircraft which saw service primarily in World War II and the Korean War. Designed and initially manufactured by Chance Vought, the Corsair was soon in great demand; additional production contract ...

as charter members of the

Cactus Air Force Cactus Air Force refers to the ensemble of Allied air power assigned to the island of Guadalcanal August 1942 until December 1942 during the early stages of the Guadalcanal Campaign, particularly those operating from Henderson Field. The term " ...

and throughout 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 ...

arriving in October 1942. The squadron also fought from the forward air bases of

Espirito Santo ''Espirito'' (Brazilian for "Spirit") is the second album by Lawson Rollins. Rollins composed all of the music and co-produced the album with Persian-American musician and producer Shahin Shahida (of Shahin & Sepehr) and multi-platinum producer Do ...

, Turtle Bay, Bougainville, and

Emirau Emirau Island, also called Emira, is an island in the Bismarck Archipelago located at . It is currently part of the New Ireland Province of Papua New Guinea. The local language is a dialect of the Mussau-Emira language. Emira is part of what on ...

. On September 15, 1944, the Green Knights landed on

Peleliu Peleliu (or Beliliou) is an island in the island nation of Palau. Peleliu, along with two small islands to its northeast, forms one of the sixteen states of Palau. The island is notable as the location of the Battle of Peleliu in World War II. H ...

and fought there until July 25, 1945. They returned to the United States to be deactivated on September 9, 1945. During the

Pacific War The Pacific War, sometimes called the Asia–Pacific War, was the theater of World War II that was fought in Asia, the Pacific Ocean, the Indian Ocean, and Oceania. It was geographically the largest theater of the war, including the vast ...

, VMF-121 produced fourteen

fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

s, more than any other squadron, including

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

recipient, Major Joseph J. Foss. VMF-121 downed 208 Japanese aircraft (165 flying Wildcats and another 44 flying Corsairs) in

aerial combat Aerial warfare is the use of military aircraft and other flying machines in warfare. Aerial warfare includes bombers attacking enemy installations or a concentration of enemy troops or strategic targets; fighter aircraft battling for control o ...

. After

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 opposin ...

, the squadron was reactivated in the United States at

Naval Air Station Glenview Naval Air Station Glenview or NAS Glenview was an operational U.S. Naval Air Station from 1923 to 1995. Located in Glenview, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, the air base primarily operated training aircraft as well as seaplanes on nearby Lake Mi ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

where the squadron's designation was changed to Marine Attack Squadron 121 (VMA-121). During this time they flew a variety of aircraft including the

F8F Bearcat The Grumman F8F Bearcat is an American single-engine carrier-based fighter aircraft introduced in late World War II. It served during the mid-20th century in the United States Navy, the United States Marine Corps, and the air forces of other na ...

and

A-1 Skyraider The Douglas A-1 Skyraider (formerly known as the AD Skyraider) is an American single-seat attack aircraft in service from 1946 to the early 1980s. The Skyraider had an unusually long career, remaining in front-line service well into the Jet Age ...

Korean War

In mid 1951, VMA-121 received orders to activate its reserve members and departed NAS Glenview for

Marine Corps Air Station El Toro Marine Corps Air Station El Toro was a United States Marine Corps Air Station located next to the community of El Toro, near Irvine, California. Before it was decommissioned in 1999, it was the home of Marine Corps Aviation on the West Coast ...

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 ...

. After completion of training in the Skyraider, the squadron was transported aboard the carrier to

Yokosuka, Japan is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city has a population of 409,478, and a population density of . The total area is . Yokosuka is the 11th most populous city in the Greater Tokyo Area, and the 12th in the Kantō region. The city ...

to begin final preparations for a combat deployment to the

Republic of Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its east ...

. In June 1953 they also set a then Marine record for a single day's ordnance delivery when 16 AD-2 Skyraiders dropped 156 tons of bombs during the

attack on the Sui-ho Dam The attack on the Sui-ho Dam was the collective name for a series of mass air attacks during the Korean War on thirteen hydroelectric generating facilities by United Nations Command air forces as part of the North Korean bombing campaign on Ju ...

. VMA-121 deployed to K-6 Airfield at

Pyongtaek Pyeongtaek () is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Located in the southwestern part of the province, Pyeongtaek was founded as a union of two districts in 940, during the Goryeo dynasty. It was elevated to city status in 1986 and is home to ...

, Republic of Korea on October 19, 1951 and conducted their first strike on October 27. Their mission was to conduct strike missions in support of infantry operations. The squadron dropped more bomb tonnage during the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

than any other Navy or Marine Corps squadron, devastating enemy airfields, supply dumps, bridges, and railroad yards. During the Korean War the Squadron insignia depicted Al Capp's "WolfGirl" from the comic strip

Li'l Abner ''Li'l Abner'' is a satirical American comic strip that appeared in many newspapers in the United States, Canada and Europe. It featured a fictional clan of hillbillies in the impoverished mountain village of Dogpatch, USA. Written and drawn ...

. The "Wolf Raiders" of VMA-121 remained in South Korea for several years after the

Korean Armistice Agreement The Korean Armistice Agreement ( ko, 한국정전협정 / 조선정전협정; zh, t=韓國停戰協定 / 朝鮮停戰協定) is an armistice that brought about a complete cessation of hostilities of the Korean War. It was signed by United Sta ...

was signed in 1953. Returning to MCAS El Toro in 1957, the squadron assumed its role in the Unit Deployment Program with scheduled rotations to Japan and traded in its AD Skyraider aircraft and joined the jet age with the F9F-8B. The Cougar equipped with the LABS system for loft bombing, was the first aircraft flown by the squadron capable of delivering

nuclear weapons A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear bomb), producing a nuclear explosion. Both bomb ...

. In late 1958, the Squadron traded the Cougars for brand new

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 ...

s. Spending most of the next year at the likes of

NAAS Fallon Naval Air Station Fallon or NAS Fallon is the United States Navy's premier air-to-air and air-to-ground training facility. It is located southeast of the city of Fallon, east of Reno in western Nevada. Since 1996, it has been home to the U.S. Na ...

MCAS 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), Mari ...

, and NOTS China Lake, the "Green Knights" became the first squadron to complete the entire special weapons delivery syllabus. During November 1962, the "Green Knights" deployed in their new A-4s to

NAS 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 ...

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...

in response to the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

Vietnam War

In August 1966, under the command of LtCol Donald Stiver, the Green Knights ferried their A-4E Skyhawks to MCAS Iwakuni, Japan and after preparatory training in Japan and Okinawa, began combat operations from

Chu Lai Air Base Chu Lai Air Base was a military airport in Chu Lai, Vietnam, operated by the United States Marine Corps between 1965 and 1970. It was located near Tam Kỳ city, the largest city in Quảng Nam Province. Abandoned after the end of the Vietnam Wa ...

, South Vietnam in December, 1966. In May 1967 VMA-121 shattered the old ordnance record for Marine Attack Squadrons by delivering over 1750 tons of ordnance in combat operations. After six months of combat operations, the squadron rotated back to

MCAS 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 ...

, Japan and

Naha Air Base , formally known as the , is an air base of the Japan Air Self-Defense Force formerly under control of the United States Air Force. It is located at Naha Airport on the Oroku Peninsula in Naha, Okinawa, Japan. History Imperial Period Naha Airf ...

, Okinawa before returning to Chu Lai for another combat tour in September 1967. During the first six months of that deployment, VMA-121 supported 118 major operations. In early 1969, the squadron was reconstituted at

MCAS Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point or MCAS Cherry Point (*) is a United States Marine Corps airfield located in Havelock, North Carolina, United States, in the eastern part of the state. It was built in 1941, and was commissioned in 1942 and ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

and newly designated as VMA(AW)-121 to reflect the squadron's transition to the all-weather attack mission with the

Grumman A-6 Intruder The Grumman A-6 Intruder is an American twinjet all-weather attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace and operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. It was designed in response to a 1957 ...

. The Green Knights were now capable of acquiring and destroying surface targets in any weather, day or night, with a wide variety of air-to-ground ordnance. The squadron participated in a 13-month deployment to MCAS Iwakuni as a member of 1st MAW. While stationed in Japan, the squadron participated in training exercises at Cubi Point Philippines and Team Sprit in Yechon, Korea. The Green Knights returned to El Toro in June 1978, and the commanding officer was Lt. Col. "WALDO" Adams. In 1982 the squadron was awarded the

Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation (MUC; pronounced ''muck'') is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or s ...

(MUC) for achieving 43,000 accident free flight hours. This Commendation spanned from years previously flown in Vietnam without an accident. The award was issued while the squadron was deployed to Iwakuni, Japan and the commanding officer Lt. Col. "JACK" Rippy. On November 11, 1985, operational control of VMA(AW)-121 was transferred to Commander, Carrier Airwing Two attached to the . In July 1987, under the command of LtCol. Joe "Java" Weston, the squadron deployed aboard the ''Ranger'' on a six-month WestPAC/Indian Ocean cruise. Arriving on Gonzo Station in the North Arabian Sea, the squadron participated in

Operation Earnest Will Operation Earnest Will (24 July 1987 – 26 September 1988) was the American military protection of Kuwaiti-owned tankers from Iranian attacks in 1987 and 1988, three years into the Tanker War phase of the Iran–Iraq War. It was the largest nav ...

, the escorting of reflagged Kuwaiti tankers. In February 1989, the squadron once again set sail aboard the Ranger for another WestPAC/Indian Ocean cruise under the command of Pete "NODAC" Jacobs. Upon return to MCAS El Toro in August 1989, operational control of VMA(AW)-121 was transferred back to Commander, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW).

The Gulf War & the 1990s

On December 8, 1989 the squadron was redesignated as Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (All Weather) ONE TWO ONE (VMFA(AW)-121), becoming the first Marine Corps

F/A-18D Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twin-engine, supersonic, carrier-capable, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a fighter and attack aircraft (hence the F/A designation). Designed by McDonnell Douglas (now part ...

night attack squadron. Slightly over one year later, the squadron deployed in support of

Operation Desert Storm Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

. During the Desert Storm Air Campaign, the squadron flew 557 sorties and 1,655.5 combat hours (more than any other Navy or Marine Corps tactical jet squadron). Returning to MCAS El Toro following the cessation of hostilities, the Green Knights resumed the unit deployment rotation and relocated to

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 during August 1994 when custody of that installation was transferred from the Navy (as

NAS 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 avi ...

) to the Marine Corps pursuant to BRAC action that also closed MCAS El Toro. The Green Knights made three deployments to the Western Pacific before returning to combat over

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

in March 2000. During this 2000 deployment, the squadron flew 287 sorties in support of

Operation Southern Watch Operation Southern Watch was an air-centric military operation conducted by the United States Department of Defense from Summer 1992 to Spring 2003. United States Central Command's Joint Task Force Southwest Asia (JTF-SWA) had the mission of mon ...

(OSW) while based at

Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base Ahmad al-Jaber Air Base is a Kuwait Air Force base that is home to 3 Kuwait Air Force F/A-18 C/D squadrons: 9 Squadron, 25 Squadron, and 61 Squadron. The base also has an area designated for operations by the U.S. Air Force and its allies. Hi ...

, Kuwait, providing much-needed operational tempo (OPTEMPO) relief to active duty

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a MAJCOM, major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of ...

and

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...

A-10 Thunderbolt II The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is a single-seat, twin-turbofan, straight-wing, subsonic attack aircraft developed by Fairchild Republic for the United States Air Force (USAF). In service since 1976, it is named for the Republic ...

fighter squadrons that had been manning the OSW mission at Al Jaber since the end of the first Gulf War.

Global War on Terror and beyond

In April 2002, the squadron deployed with six aircraft to

Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan,, pronounced or the Kyrgyz Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Asia. Kyrgyzstan is bordered by Kazakhstan to the north, Uzbekistan to the west, Tajikistan to the south, and the People's Republic of China to the east. ...

, followed by the remaining six aircraft and personnel a month later. The squadron flew more than 900 combat sorties over

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

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 ...

, returning to MCAS Miramar in October 2002. Only 3 months after returning from Kyrgyzstan, the Green Knights deployed to Al Jaber Air Base,

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

. From February to May 2003, the squadron flew more than 750 combat sorties over Iraq in support of

and

Operation Iraqi Freedom {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

, and returned to MCAS Miramar on May 12. In March 2005, the squadron deployed as part of the Unit Deployment Program to

, Japan. The squadron returned to MCAS Miramar on September 15, 2005. In February 2007, the squadron deployed to

Al Asad Air Base Ayn al Asad is an Iraqi Armed Forces base located in Al Anbar Governorate (also called Anbar province) of western Iraq. It was originally known as Qadisiyah Airbase. It was the second largest US military airbase in Iraq during Operation Iraqi ...

in support of

06-08. The squadron deployed as part of the

Unit Deployment Program The Unit Deployment Program (UDP) is a system for assigning deployments of the United States Marine Corps. To reduce the number of unaccompanied tours and improve unit continuity, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, (CMC) established it to provide ...

, Japan from September 2008 to March 2009, March 2010 to September 2010, and January 2012 to July 2012. On August 17, 2011, an F/A-18D from VMFA(AW)-121 crashed into the Pacific Ocean approximately 85 miles southwest of San Diego. Both pilot and WSO ejected safely.

F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter era

On 28 September 2012, LtCol. Jeff Scott took command of the Green Knights from LtCol. Michael Waterman, marking the end of the F/A-18D Hornet's tenure in VMFA(AW)-121 and ushering in the fifth-generation stealth fighter era. This change of command officially moved the squadron from MAG-11 at MCAS Miramar to MAG-13 at MCAS Yuma. On 20 November, VMFA(AW)-121 was officially redesignated VMFA-121, accepting delivery of the first three F-35B aircraft becoming the first operational F-35B squadron in the Marine Corps Operating Forces and the first operational F-35 squadron in any service. On 9 January 2017, VMFA-121 permanently departed Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona transferring to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. On 18 January 2017, VMFA-121 arrived at MCAS Iwakuni, Japan as the first forward deployed permanent F-35B squadron. On April 24, 2018 an

F-35B The Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II is an American family of single-seat, single-engine, all-weather Stealth aircraft, stealth multirole combat aircraft that is intended to perform both Air superiority fighter, air superiority and attack ...

belonging to the squadron made an emergency landing at

Fukuoka airport , formerly known as Itazuke Air Base, is an international and domestic airport located east of Hakata Station in Hakata-ku, Fukuoka, Japan. Fukuoka Airport is the principal airport on the island of Kyushu and is the fourth busiest passenger ...

. On 29 September 2020, an

crashed in California after having a midair collision with a

KC-130 The Lockheed Martin (previously Lockheed) KC-130 is a family of the extended-range tanker version of the C-130 Hercules transport aircraft. The KC-130J is the latest variant operated by the United States Marine Corps (USMC), with 48 delivered ...

from

VMGR-152 Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 152 (VMGR-152) provides aerial refueling service to support Fleet Marine Force (FMF) air operations; and provides assault air transport of personnel, equipment, and supplies. The squadron, known as the "Su ...

Squadron aces

Gallery

File:F4F-4 Wildcats of VMF-121 at Guadalcanal 1942.jpg, VMF-121 F4F-4s at Guadalcanal File:JoeFoss.gif, Capt. Joe Foss, VMF-121 Medal of Honor recipient File:Douglas AD-2 Skyraider of VMA-121 in flight, in the early 1950s.jpg, VMA-121 AD-2 Skyraider, Korea File:VMA-121 CO commemorative plaque.JPG, Plaque located at

Camp Mujuk Camp may refer to: Outdoor accommodation and recreation * Campsite or campground, a recreational outdoor sleeping and eating site * a temporary settlement for nomads * Camp, a term used in New England, Northern Ontario and New Brunswick to descri ...

, Korea that commemorates LtCol. Alfred Nelson Gordon, CO of VMA-121 who died during the Korean War File:F9F-8 VMA-121 MCAS El Toro NAN8-58.jpg, VMA-121 F9F-8 ''Cougar'' at MCAS El Toro, 1958 File:A4D-2 VMA-121 CVA-43 1960.jpg, An A4D-2 after a wave-off from USS ''Coral Sea'' in 1960/61. File:A-4E landing at Chu Lai Mar 1967.jpg, An A-4E from VMA-121 landing at Chu Lai, March 1967. File:Grumman A-6E Intruder of VMA(AW)-121 in flight on 23 November 1981 (6364507).jpg, A-6 ''Intruder'' of VMA(AW)-121 File:F-18A VMFAW-121 SA-7 damage1991.jpg, VMFA(AW)-121 ''Hornet'' damaged during the Gulf War in 1991 File:USMC-16801.jpg, F/A-18D CAG Bird Of VMFA(AW)-121 File:F-35B of VMFA-121 lands at MCAS Yuma 2013.JPG, A VMFA-121 F-35B at MCAS Yuma, in 2013

Citations

References

;Bibliography * * * * *

External links

* Retrieved on 2022-01-07.
VMFA-121 Green Knight at Seaforces.org
Retrieved on 2022-01-07.
Joe J. Foss, Medal of Honor
– Joe Foss estate artifacts restored, preserved and displayed at Historical Registry. Retrieved on 2022-01-07.
The Bent Prop Project: The Swamp Corsair
Retrieved on 2022-01-07.
Video of a VMFA(AW)-121 F/A-18D aerial refueling
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vmfa-121 Fighter attack squadrons of the United States Marine Corps FS0121