HMLA-169

Last updated

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169
HMLA-169 insignia.png
Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 insignia
Active30 September 1971 - present
Country United States
Allegiance United States of America
Branch United States Marine Corps
TypeLight/Attack squadron
Role
Part of Marine Aircraft Group 39
3rd Marine Aircraft Wing
Garrison/HQ Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton
Nickname(s)"Vipers"
Motto(s)"On time. On target. Professional throughout." "We hate each other, but we hate you more." [1]
Tail Code SN
Mascot(s)Bak-Bak
Engagements Operation Desert Storm
Operation Restore Hope
Operation Iraqi Freedom
* 2003 invasion of Iraq
* Battle of Najaf
* Operation Phantom Fury
Operation Enduring Freedom
Commanders
Current
commander		LtCol Joel E. "LTJ" Croskey

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 (HMLA-169) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, California and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (3rd MAW).

Contents

Mission

Support the Marine Air-Ground Task Force commander by providing offensive air support, utility support, armed escort and airborne supporting arms coordination, day or night under all weather conditions during expeditionary, joint, or combined operations.

History

1970s and 1980s

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 was activated as Marine Attack Helicopter Squadron 169 (HMA-169) at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California, on 30 September 1971. Unlike its sister squadrons, HMA-269 and HMA-369, HMA-169 was initially equipped with AH-1G Cobras. During 1974-75 the squadron transitioned to the more capable AH-1J Sea Cobra. The AH-1Gs were transferred out by July 1976.[ citation needed ]

Through the 1970s, HMA-169 engaged in rigorous amphibious training at sea and combined exercises ashore. The 1980s brought increased operational commitments and a growing legacy of aviation safety milestones.[ citation needed ]

On 1 October 1986, the re-designated HMLA-169 had all 24 of their advanced AH-1T (TOW) cobras phased out which were replaced with 12 of the new AH-1W (Super Cobra). These were complemented with 12 UH-1N Hueys, increasing the Vipers' capabilities commensurate with the needs of the Marine Air Ground Task Force. This made HMLA-169 the first operational Marine Corps squadron to deploy the new Super Cobra both at home and overseas on deployment.[ citation needed ]

Gulf War and the 1990s

From December 1990 to June 1991, HMLA-169 embarked aboard the USS Tarawa in support of combat operations in Southwest Asia, and deployed ashore during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm with MAG-50 at Tanajib, Saudi Arabia. From 24 February – 4 March 1991, the Vipers flew 234 combat sorties engaging enemy Iraqi forces without loss of aircraft or personnel.[ citation needed ]

Returning from the Kuwaiti theater, the squadron was routed to assist in humanitarian relief to flood-ravaged Bangladesh as part of Operation Sea Angel. Shortly after that the squadron participated in the humanitarian assistance mission Operation Fiery Vigil, after Mount Pinatubo erupted 15 June 1991. In May 1992, HMLA-169 supported local law enforcement during the Los Angeles riots, and again in 1993 conducted humanitarian relief and peace-keeping operations in Somalia during Operation Restore Hope.[ citation needed ]

Global War on Terror

HMLA-169 sourced a detachment of 4 Cobras and 3 Venoms to the 15th Marine Expeditionary Unit (15th MEU), which the among the[ clarification needed ] first Marines into Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks in 2001. The squadron deployed to Iraq in late February 2003 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF). During the 2003 invasion of Iraq 12 of the 18 AH-1Ws of the unit sustained battle damage [2] and on 30 March 2003 a UH-1N Huey crashed; killing three members on board. [3] HMLA-169 deployed again in the summer of 2004 to support the second iteration of OIF. During this deployment, they provided close air support during the Battle of Najaf and Operation Phantom Fury in Fallujah. The squadron is configured with 18 AH-1W SuperCobras and 9 UH-1Y SuperVenoms. HMLA-169 again deployed to Iraq in March 2006 to provide close air support for the 1st Marine Division in Al Anbar province. The unit deployed to Al Anbar again in October 2007 [4] [5]

The squadron was deployed to Afghanistan in the spring of 2009 as part of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade. [6] They were part of the 17,000 troop increase announced by President Obama in February, 2009. [7]

In 2014 the squadron was awarded the John P. Giguere award for Marine Light/AtHelicopteropter Squadron ofYear the year as well as the Pete Ross award for aviation safety. [8]

Unit awards

A unit citation or commendation is an award bestowed upon an organization for the action cited. Members of the unit who participated in said actions are allowed to wear on their uniforms the awarded unit citation. HMLA-169 has been presented with the following awards: [9]

StreamerAwardYear(s)Additional Info
PUC 1B.PNG Presidential Unit Citation Streamer with one Bronze Star2003, 2009Iraq, Afghanistan
Streamer JMUA.PNG Joint Meritorious Unit Award Streamer 1991Bangladesh
NUC 1S.PNG Navy Unit Commendation Streamer with one Silver Star and one Bronze Star1991, 1993, 2001, 2004-5, 2006-7, 2007-8, 2010–11Southwest Asia, Iraq, Afghanistan
MUC 4B.png Meritorious Unit Commendation Streamer with four Bronze Stars1986-87, 1987–88, 1989–90, 1996–97, 2000–02
Streamer NDS.PNG National Defense Service Streamer with two Bronze Stars1951–1954, 1961–1974, 1990–1995, 2001–present Vietnam War, Gulf War, War on Terrorism
Streamer AFE.PNG Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal

Streamer SAS.PNG Southwest Asia Service Streamer with three Bronze Stars

ACM 3B.png Afghanistan Campaign Streamer with three bronze stars

Iraq Campaign streamer (USMC).svg Iraq Campaign Streamer with four bronze stars

Streamer gwotS.PNG Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Streamer 2001–present
Streamer gwotS.PNG Global War on Terrorism Service Streamer 2001–present

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bell AH-1 SuperCobra</span> Series of twin-engine attack helicopters

The Bell AH-1 SuperCobra is a twin-engined attack helicopter that was developed on behalf of, and primarily operated by, the United States Marine Corps (USMC). The twin Cobra family, itself part of the larger Huey family, includes the AH-1J SeaCobra, the AH-1T Improved SeaCobra, and the AH-1W SuperCobra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-367</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 367 (HMLA-367) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. Originally commissioned during World War II, the squadron participated in combat operations on Peleliu and Okinawa. Reactivated during the Vietnam War, the squadron has served during numerous conflicts since. The squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, California and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-167</span> US Marine Corps unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 167 (HMLA-167) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of Bell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. Known as the "Warriors", they are based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina and fall under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 29 (MAG-29) and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">3rd Marine Aircraft Wing</span> United States military unit

The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing is the major west coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps. It is headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, in San Diego, California and provides the aviation combat element for I Marine Expeditionary Force. The wing is made up of a headquarters squadron, four flying groups, an aviation command and control group and an aviation engineering group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2nd Marine Aircraft Wing</span> Military unit

The 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing is the major east coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps and is headquartered in Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina. The Wing provides the aviation combat element for the II Marine Expeditionary Force.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-267</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 267 (HMLA-267) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of Bell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and Bell UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. Nicknamed the "Stingers", the squadron is based at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, California and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-775</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 775 (HMLA-775) is a reserve United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of Bell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and Bell UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron was reactivated from cadre status on 1 Oct 2016 and is based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 41 (MAG-41) and the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Aircraft Group 39</span> Military unit

Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) is a United States Marine Corps aviation unit based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California that is currently composed of four AH-1Z "Viper" Cobra and UH-1Y "Venom" Huey light attack squadrons, two MV-22 Osprey squadrons, an aviation logistics squadron, a Headquarters Squadron, a Marine Wing Support Squadron and the H-1 Fleet Replacement Squadron. The group falls under the command of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and the 1st Marine Expeditionary Force

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-369</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 369 (HMLA-369) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron, also known as the "Gunfighters", is based at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, California and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-773</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 773 (HMLA-773) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of Bell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and Bell UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron is based at Joint Base McGuire–Dix–Lakehurst, NJ and Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans and falls under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 49 (MAG-49) and the 4th Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Aircraft Group 29</span> Military unit

Marine Aircraft Group 29 (MAG-29) is a United States Marine Corps aviation unit based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina. The group is currently composed of four CH-53E Super Stallion squadrons including the Fleet Replacement Squadron, two Light Attack Helicopter Squadrons flying AH-1Z Vipers and UH-1Y Venoms, and a maintenance and logistics squadron.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-269</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 269 (HMLA-269) was a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. Also known as "The Gunrunners", the squadron was based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina and fell under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 29 (MAG-29) and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLAT-303</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Training Squadron 303 (HMLAT-303), is a United States Marine Corps helicopter training squadron stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, California. Known as "Atlas", HMLAT-303 trains newly commissioned Naval Aviators, conversion pilots, and refresher pilots to fly the Bell UH-1Y Venom and Bell AH-1Z Viper. HMLAT-303 is also responsible for training Bell UH-1Y Venom crew chiefs. It is part of Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bell UH-1Y Venom</span> Military utility helicopter model by Bell

The Bell UH-1Y Venom is a twin-engine, medium-sized utility helicopter built by Bell Helicopter under the H-1 upgrade program of the United States Marine Corps. One of the latest members of the numerous Huey family, the UH-1Y is also called "Yankee" after the NATO phonetic alphabet pronunciation of its variant letter. Bell was originally to produce UH-1Ys by rebuilding UH-1Ns, but ultimately built them from scratch instead. In 2008, the UH-1Y entered service with the Marine Corps and also began full-rate production. The aircraft replaced the USMC's UH-1N Twin Huey light utility helicopters, introduced in the early 1970s. The final UH-1Y was delivered in 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton</span> US military installation in California

Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton or MCAS Camp Pendleton is a United States Marine Corps airfield located within Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It was commissioned in 1942 and is currently home to Marine Aircraft Group 39. The airfield is also known as Munn Field in honor of Lieutenant General John C. "Toby" Munn, the first Marine aviator to serve as the Commanding General of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-467</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 467 (HMLA-467) was a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of AH-1W SuperCobra attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron, nicknamed the "Sabers", was based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina and was under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 29 (MAG-29) and the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing. The squadron's aircraft markings are grey & white stripes on the aircraft tail to replicate the tail markings on a Diamondback Rattlesnake and the markings on the lighthouses in North Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">H-1 upgrade program</span>

The H-1 upgrade program is the United States Marine Corps's program to develop the AH-1Z Viper and UH-1Y Venom military helicopters to replace its aging fleets of AH-1W SuperCobras and UH-1N Twin Hueys. The contract was awarded in 1996 to Bell Helicopter, the original manufacturer of both aircraft, to design the new airframes as modernized attack and utility helicopters with considerable design commonality, to reduce operating costs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HMLA-469</span> Military unit

Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469 (HMLA-469) was a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of AH-1 SuperCobra and AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron was last headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton in Southern California and fell under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 39 (MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. The squadron was commissioned on 30 June 2009 and decommissioned on 16 December 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine Aircraft Group 40</span> Military unit

Marine Aircraft Group 40 is a composite United States Marine Corps aviation unit that is based in Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2009. They served as the aviation combat element for 2nd Marine Expeditionary Brigade which was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom from spring 2009 through 4 April 2010 when they were relieved by the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (Fwd). The group is currently composed of two CH-53 squadrons, one light attack helicopter squadron, one AV-8B Harrier II squadron, one MV-22 Osprey squadron, one KC-130 tactical aerial refueling squadron, one unmanned aerial vehicle squadron and an aviation logistics squadron.

References

PD-icon.svg This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Marine Corps .

Citations

  1. ↑
    PXL 20230815 012543815.MP PXL 20230815 012543815.MP.jpg
    PXL 20230815 012543815.MP
  2. ↑ Visconage & Harris 2004, p. 120.
  3. ↑ "KIA Incident: 20030330 HMLA-169 Operation Iraqi Freedom". USMC Combat Helicopter & Tiltrotor Association.
  4. ↑ Teslevich, Cpl Jonathan K. (1 May 2006). "Vipers assume responsibility over Al Anbar skies". U.S. Marine Corps. Archived from the original on 27 June 2006. Retrieved 21 November 2007.
  5. ↑ Teslevich, Cpl Jonathan K. (28 May 2006). "Viper's gunships escort Marine patrol in Karma". U.S. Marine Corps. Retrieved 4 May 2015.
  6. ↑ Hlad, Jennifer (9 March 2008). "2/8, other Lejeune units to deploy with 2nd MEB". ENC Today. Archived from the original on 14 March 2009. Retrieved 9 March 2009.
  7. ↑ Page, Susan (16 February 2009). "Obama OKs adding Afghanistan forces". USA Today. Retrieved 4 May 2010.
  8. ↑ "Marine Corps Aviation Association (MCAA) CY2013 Award Winners". U.S. Marine Corps. 7 April 2014. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2014.
  9. ↑ "Lineage and Honors of HMLA-169" (PDF). Marine Corps University. Retrieved 9 June 2020.

Bibliography

  • Visconage, Michael D. & Harris, Carroll N. (2004). Third Marine Aircraft Wing - Operation Iraqi Freedom. Quantico, VA: Marine Corps Association. ISBN   978-0-94032-833-4.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.