WW II USMC Marine VMF 531(N) Night Fighter Squadron History Book for Sale

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WW II USMC Marine VMF 531(N) Night Fighter Squadron History Book For Sale

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WW II USMC Marine VMF 531(N) Night Fighter Squadron History Book:
$29.00

This is a great history of this late war squadron fought in the late campaigns, and ended up the war serving in China for the occupation in 1945.

Marine NightFighter Squadron 531 (VMF(N)-531) was activated on November 16, 1942 at MarineCorps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina. On January 9, 1943 the squadronbecame part of the Fleet Marine Force and on April 1 was absorbed by MarineAircraft Group 53 (MAG-53). The squadron took delivery of its first non-traineraircraft, the Lockheed PV-1 Ventura on February 15. Due to the uniqueness oftheir night fight mission, VMF(N)-531 was placed under the direction of theCommandant of the Marine Corps until it was ready to deploy to combat.

Respondingto Japanese night attacks on Guadalcanal, MAG-53 was reassigned to the 3rdMarine Aircraft Wing on April 15, 1943 and was quickly ordered to deploy to theSouth Pacific as soon as possible. VMF(N)-531 was the first combat squadron toleave MCAS Cherry Point. After layovers in Hawaii and Espiritu Santo, thesquadron finally arrived at Renard Field on Banika in the Russell Islands onSeptember 11. Joining Marine Aircraft Group 21, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, theGrey Ghosts flew their first combat patrol on September 16 making them thefirst naval aviation night-fighter squadron to operate in the South Pacific.The squadron\'s first kill was made by Captain Duane Jenkins, who happened upona Betty bomber on the evening of November 13, 1943.

The firstkill aided by GCI did not come until December 6. During their tour in thePacific, the squadron operated out of fields in the Russell Islands, VellaLavella and Bougainville. They accounted for 12 enemy planes shot down by 5different crews, all at night, with a loss of 6 of their own aircraft and 17crew members, none of them a result of enemy fire. The squadron returned toMCAS Cherry Point on September 1, 1944 and was quickly deactivated only to bereactivated a short time later on October 13 at Marine Corps Auxiliary AirfieldKinston (MCAAF Kinston), North Carolina and reassigned to MAG-53, 9th MarineAircraft Wing. A short time later the squadron moved to Marine Corps AirStation Eagle Mountain Lake near Fort Worth, Texas to operate as a trainingsquadron for replacement pilots and ground control intercept operators beingsent overseas.

This reprinted book has 112 pages in this staple bound reference / book.