Скачать или смотреть Marine Air Station MCAS Santa Barbara Operations During WW2

In early 1944, after the Battle of Tarawa, where many felt that close air support left much to be desired, General Holland Smith recommended that Marine aviators be trained to operate from aircraft carriers. In July 1944, Commandant of the Marine Corps General Alexander Vandegrift held a meeting with Admiral Chester Nimitz where it was agreed that Marine aircraft would be placed on a certain number of escort carriers to provide close air support for Marines during amphibious landings. This led to the establishment of the Marine Carrier Air Group (MCVG) and the establishment of a command known as Marine Carrier Groups Pacific, which would be based at MCAS Santa Barbara. The goal for the unit was to have eight air groups ready for the expected invasion of Japan late in 1945.

At its peak, the station housed nearly 500 officers, about 3,100 enlisted men, and 440 women Marines. A total of 24 squadrons trained at the base during the war.

This video shows several plane types (F4U, TBF(M), SBD, F6F) associated with a few of these squadrons. The close up shots of the F4U with ID FF65 are from Marine Air Group (MAG) 48 squadron VMF-351. Marine Air Group (MAG) 48 included the first Marine Squadrons to operate from Escort Carriers in the Pacific theater during WW2. There were four Escort Carriers that started this new program:

CVE-106 USS Block Island with squadrons VMTB-233 and VMF-511
CVE-107 USS Gilbert Islands with squadrons VMTB-143 and VMF-512
CVE-109 USS Cape Gloucester with squadrons VMTB-132 and VMF-351
CVE-111 USS Vella Gulf with squadrons VMTB-234 and VMF-513

More of these WW2 Carrier based training and operations videos will be found at channel @VMTB143Mike. I will be uploading new videos of the Squadron, ship training and combat experience over time.

These films are from the collections of the USMC History Division and are digitized and physically preserved through a partnership with the University of South Carolina. These films, and much more, can be found at digital.library.sc.edu.

#WW2FighterPilot #WW2Aircraft Carrier #WW2History #WW2FighterPilotTraining #WW2Color #WW2