The VMA-324 Devildogs

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Courtesy of George Ertlmeier

George Ertlmeier
Nickolas Carton

Patch
Handle
Heritage
  • 1 Oct 1943
    VMF-324 was established at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina and attached to Marine Aircraft Group 32, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force.

  • 15 Oct 1945
    VMF-324 was disestablished at Marine Corps Air Depot, Miramar, California.

  • 17 Mar 1952
    Reestablished as VMA 324, Marine Aircraft Group 31, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic based at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina.

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Home Ports
    Date - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Location:
  • 1964 - - - - - - - MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina.
  • 1971 - - - - - - - MCAS Yuma, Arizona.

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Air Wings
    Date - - - - - - - - - - - - Tail code - - - - - - - Air Wing
  • 1 October 1943 - - - - MAG-32 3rd MAW
  • 11 November 1943 - - - MAG-34 3rd MAW
  • 1 April 1944 - - - - - MAG-34 9th MAW
  • 6 September 1944 - - - MAG-23 3rd MAW
  • 17 March 1952- - - - - MAG-31 3rd MAW
  • 15 February 1954 - - - MAG-32 2nd MAW
  • 18 July 1954 - - - - - MAG-31 3rd MAW
  • 28 February 1958 - - - MAG-33 3rd MAW
  • 2 July 1958- - - - - - MAG-24 2nd MAW
  • 10 August 1959 - - - - MAG-14 2nd MAW
  • 13 September 1960- - - CmdGen 1st MAW
  • 23 September 1960- - - MAG-12 1st MAW
  • 8 October 1961 - - - - MAG-32 2nd MAW
  • 10 January 1966- - - - MAG-31 2nd MAW

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Deployments
    Departure & Return - - - - - - - - Air Wing - - Carrier - Aircraft - - Area of Operations:
  • 01/55 to 03/55 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - AD-4B - - - - NAS ROOSEVELT ROADS PUERTO RICO
  • 08/63 to 03/64 - - - - - CVG-7 - - CVA 62 - A-4B - - - - MEDITERRANEAN
  • 01/65 to 03/65 - - - - - - - - - - - - - -  A-4E - - - - NAS ROOSEVELT ROADS PUERTO RICO
  • 06/66 to 02/67 - - - - - CVW-7 - - CVA 62 - A-4E - - - - MEDITERRANEAN
  • 07/67 to 05/68 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - A-4B & A-4C - NAS ROOSEVELT ROADS PUERTO RICO

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Aircraft
Commanding Officers
Events
  • October 1, 1943
    VMF-324 was established at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina and attached to Marine Aircraft Group 32, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force.

  • October 12, 1943
    VMF-324 moved for training to Marine Corps Auxiliary Air Facility, (Oak Grove) Pollocksville, North Carolina (near Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point). Later that month the Squadron was transferred.

  • November 11, 1943
    Reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 34, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force to New Bern, North Carolina Simmons Knott Field. Later that month the Squadron was transferred to Mitchell Field, New Bern, North Carolina.

  • April 1, 1944
    VMF-324 was detached from the 3d Marine Aircraft Wing and joined the 9th Marine Aircraft Wing.

  • July 15, 1944
    Detached from the 9th Marine Aircraft Wing and departed from Marine Corps Air Facility, Kinston, North Carolina for Marine Corps Air Depot, Miramar, San Diego, California.

  • July 20, 1944
    VMF-324 arrived at Miramar and attached to Marine Fleet Air, West Coast for pre-combat training.

  • August 31, 1944
    Detached from Marine Fleet Air, West Coast and sailed from San Diego for Ewa, Oahu, Territory of Hawaii for staging to Midway Island.

  • September 6, 1944
    VMF-324 joined Marine Aircraft Group 23, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force.

  • September 10 - 16, 1944
    VMF-324 arrived at Midway. At Midway the Squadron acted as training and replacement unit for the Pacific theatre.

  • September 1, 1945
    Transferred in increments to Headquarters Squadron, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Fleet Marine Force at Ewa, Oahu, Territory of Hawaii.

  • September 22, 1945
    Attached to Headquarters, Marine Fleet Air, West Coast.

  • September 28, 1945
    Arrived at San Francisco, California and proceeded to Marine Corps Air Depot, Miramar, San Diego, California.

  • October 15, 1945
    VMF-324 was disestablished at Marine Corps Air Depot, Miramar, California.

  • March 17, 1952
    Reestablished as VMA 324, Marine Aircraft Group 31, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic based at Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina.

  • April 5, 1952
    Transferred to Marine Corps Air Station, Miami, Florida. The Squadron was assigned the FG-1 Chance Vought Corsair and F6F Grumman Hellcat for training.

  • November 1952
    The Squadron was assigned a complete complement of FG-1 Corsairs and the Grumman F6F Hellcats were retired.

  • January and February 1953
    VMA-324 was deployed to Naval Air Station Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico for Training Exercise III. The exercise was comprised of close air support strikes on Vieques, Culebra Desecheo and St. Croix Islands.

  • June 1953
    Carrier Qualifications on the United States Ship Saipan.

  • September 1953
    Carrier Qualifications on the United States Ship Saipan.

  • October 13, 1953
    Sailed from Naval Auxiliary Air Facility, Mayport, Florida for duty on board the United States Ship Saipan to the Western Pacific.

  • November 1953
    Arrived at Kokosuka, Japan and Task Force 95.

  • February 15, 1954
    Reassigned Marine Aircraft Group 32, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic.

  • April 1954
    VMA-324 flew its Corsairs from the United States Ship Saipan to an airport in Indo-China and turned the planes over to French pilots.

  • May 1954
    The United States Ship Saipan and its Air Group were relieved and returned to Mayport Florida via the Suez Canal.

  • July 18 1954
    Arrived at Mayport and changed location from the United States Ship Saipan to the Marine Corps Air Station, Miami, Florida. Operational control transferred from the Commander in Chief, Atlantic Fleet to the Commanding Officer, Marine Aircraft Group 31, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic.

  • January through April 1955
    VMA-324 deployed to Naval Air Station Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico for training. The VMA-324 January 22, 1955 fly-away schedule.

  • August 1, 1955
    Redesignated VMA 324, Marine Aircraft Group 31, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic.

  • August 23, 1955
    Departed from the Marine Corps Air Station, Miami for the Naval Air Station, Norfolk, Virginia where it embarked on board the United States Ship Lake Champlain the following day for a Mediterranean cruise, during which it was attached to Carrier Aircraft Group 6.

  • March 29, 1956
    Disembarked from the United States Ship Lake Champlain at the Naval Air Station, Norfolk and moved to Marine Corps Air Station, Miami, arriving the same day.

  • April - May 1956
    The Vagabonds were reorganized and assigned Douglas AD-6 Skyraiders.

  • June 1956
    VMA-324 was deployed to Naval Air Station Coco Solo, Panama Canal Zone for training.

  • January 6, 1957
    Arrived at Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro, California.

  • January 12, 1957
    Departed U. S. for Japan where it arrived 15 January and joined Marine Aircraft Group 11, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

  • September 8, 1957
    Sailed on the United States Ship Lake Champlain from the Marine Barracks Annex, Bayonne, New Jersey for Operation DEEPWATER.

  • October 30, 1957
    Arrived at the Marine Corps Air Station, Miami, Florida.

  • February 28, 1958
    Departed from Japan and arrived at the Marine Corps Air Station, El Toro on 1 March where it was attached to the Marine Aircraft Group 33, 3d Marine Aircraft Wing.

  • March 14 - 18, 1958
    Departed by elements from Marine Corps Air Station, Miami for about six weeks temporary additional duty in connection with Single Squadron Operations at the Naval Air Station, Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico.

  • April 16 - 19, 1958
    Returned to the Marine Corps Air Station, Miami from the Naval Air Station, Roosevelt Roads.

  • May 1959
    The Vagabonds were assigned the Douglas A4D-2 Skyhawk.

  • July 2, 1958
    Reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 24, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic.

  • August 10, 1959
    Reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 14, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing, Air, Fleet Marine Force, Atlantic.

  • September 13, 1960
    Attached to the Commanding General, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

  • September 23, 1960
    Reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 12, 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, Japan. VMA 324 deployed to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, Japan. During the five months the Iwakuni runway was being rebuilt the Squadron deployed aboard United States Ship Coral Sea CVA-43.

  • February 1, 1961
    Redesignated VMF(AW)-324.

  • July 1, 1961
    Redesignated VMF-324.

  • October 8, 1961
    Redesignated VMA-324, Marine Aircraft Group 32, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing, Beaufort, South Carolina.

  • January 10, 1966
    Reassigned to Marine Aircraft Group 31, 2d Marine Aircraft Wing.

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Awards

Sources:
  • Peggy & George Ertlmeier
  • Allen Feldman
  • Harry S. Gann
  • Bill Headley
  • Michael Klaver
  • Bill Lover
  • Frank Mirande
  • Steve Waldschmidt
  • John Gabbard

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