The American buildup in Vietnam, beginning in 1965, turned into a ten-year fighting assignment. The 1st MAW became the air combat element of III Marine Amphibious Force and, eventually, the largest sinigle Marine aviation unit to that time. Its peak strength of six aircraft groups comprised 26 squadrons flying 242 fixed-wing airplanes and186 helicopters. Marine F-4 "Phantom IIs" and A-4 "Skyhawks" flew close air support; A-6 "Intruders" made deep interdiction bombing runs; KC-130 "Hurcules" conducted aerial refuling and supplied forward bases; OV-10 "Broncos" provided aerial observation. Helicopters conducted combat assault, resupply, medical evacuation, liaison, transport, and observation missions. Eventually, Bell UH-1 "Hueys" and Boing-Vertol CH-46 "Sea knights" replaced the venerable Seahorses,Sikorsky CH-53 "Sea Stallions" became the heavy lifters, and Bell AH-1 "Cobra" ginships were introduced.
In 1968 the 1st MAW was subordinated to the Seventh Air Force, but this change hed less effect on the quality of air supprot than the parallal shift control had in Korea. American withdrawals from Vietnam began in 1969, and most Marine air units were out by 1971. The North Vietnamese "Easter Offensive" the next spring brought Marine squadrons hurrying back to Vienam. Marine air took part in the "Linebacker" bombings of North Vietnam, and Marine helicopters asisted mine-sweeping operations at Haiphong harbor. In 1973, MAG-12 was the last American aviation unit to leave Vietnam. Two years later, ship borne Marine helicopters conducted large-scale non-combatant evacuations Eagle Pull (Phonom Penh) and Frequent Wind (Saigon), finally bringing America's longest armed conflict to an end. Two aviation Marines recived Medals of Honor for actions in Vietnam. Captain Stephen W. Pless made a daring rescue of ground troops while flying a UH-1E armed helicopter, and Private First Class Raymond M. Clausen leapt from a hovering Sea knight into a minefield to lift out several wounded men. Marine Captains Doyle D. Baker and Larry Richard each scored kills while on exchange duty with the Air Force. Major Lee T. Lasseter and Captain John D. Cummings won the only all-Marine aerial victory of the war. BGen McCutcheon took over the 1st MAW in 1965 and later, after being promoted to Lieutenant General and serving as deputy chief of staff for air headquarters, returned to Vietnamto command III MAF in 1971. He was slated to become assisant commandant and the first Marine aviatior to hold four-star rank on active duty but succumbed to cancer. Another influential aviator of the period was Thomas H. Miller, Jr., a self-assured test pilot, veteran of three wars, and holder of a world speed record. He test-piloted Skyhawks, Phantoms, and Harriers for the Marine Corps. LtGen. Miller served as deputy chief of staff for aviation and retired in 1979. General Earl E. Anderson was the first Marine aviator to wear the four stars on active duty when he was named assistant cammandant as the Vietnam era came to an end. During the two decades after Vietnam, the Marines improved existing airframes and gained two new jets: the superb multi-purpose Grumman F/A-18 Hornet and the radical short takeoff/vertical landing McDonnell Douglas AV-8 Harrier jump jet. Marine fliers participated in four combat actions during the 1980s: Marine helicopter crews flew in a hostage rescue mission that ended in flames at Desert One in 1980; Marine helicopters flying off USS Guam helped rescue Americans threatened by a Communitst coup in Grenada in 1983; carrier-borne Marine Hornets attacked Libya in 1986; and Marine Cobra gunships took down armed oil plateforms that served as Iranian terrorist bases in the Persian Gulf in 1989. After Saddam Hussein's Iraqi forces overran Kuwait in 1990, Marine AH-1W Super Cobras were the first "Tank Busting" helicopters to arrive in the Persian Gulf. Major General Royal N. Moore, Jr.'s 3d Marine Aircraft Wing deployed to southwest Aisa in August and within six months became a "super wing" musteringmore than sixteen thousand personnel, 222 fixed-wing aircraft, and 186 helicopters. Among the Marine forces afloat were also two aircraft groups, including a twenty-plane Harrier squadron on board USS Nassau. The 3d MAW was under the operational control of a Joint Forces Air Component Commander, the newest term for single air managment. By then joint operatins were so familiar that this was accepted without protest. During Operation Desert Shield, Marine jets protected Saudi boders and airspace. Marine helicopters conducted a daring night non-combatant evacuation in Somalia, supproted the sea quarantine of Iraq, participated in several high-profile training exercises, and formed an experimental maneuver element called "Task Force Cunningham." During Operation Desert Storm, Marine air shaped and isolated the battlefield, then provided close air supprot in Kuwait, and launched the first harrier strikes from an amphibious assault ship. Harriers and Hornets destroyed Iraqi convoys along the "Highway of death." Marine Cobras cruched Iraqi tank attacks, and helicopters played a major role in a successful amphibious deception. Colonel Manfred A. "Fokker" Rietsch commanded the largest aircraft group in Marine histroy (MAG-70) and personelly flew more missions than any other coalition pilot in the Persian Gulf. Rietsch bluffed six Iraqi fighters back home during a tense aerial incident in November 1990 and then logged sixty-six combat mission in thirty-one days during Desert Storm/ The 1990s saw Marines place great emphasis on military operations other than war. Marine helicopters provided most of the liftfor humanitarian relife operations Fiery Vigil (Phillippines), Provide Comfort (Northern Iraq), Sea Angel (Bangladesh), and Restore Hope (Somalia). Marine KC-130s delivered relief supplies to Rwanda. Marine helicopters conducted non-combatant evacuations of American embassies in West Africa on three occasions and lifted civilians saley out of Albania. Marine F-18D Hornets and EA-6B Prowlers, operating from Aviano, Italy, patrolled the skies over the former Yugoslavia as part of a multi-national force. The most widely reported aviation incident there was the Marine helicopter rescue of a USAF pilot shot down in Bosnia. Modern Marine aiation is powerful and versitile. Over the years, Marine air has become the most focused air supprot force in the world. Its squadrons, groups, and wings are vital components in Marine air-ground task forces for combat or humanitarian operations. As the tweny-first century approaches, Marine air is a superb combined arms weapon, and today's Flying Leathernecks command a world-wide reputation for skill and elan than is second to none. 123 Learn about the F-18 Hornet
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