Article - Marine Corps Air Station New River - 2017

Marine Corps Air Station New River - 2017

Marine Corps Air Station New River (MCAS) is the main marine helicopter/ tiltrotor base on the East coast of the United States and it supports aircrew training for all helicopters operated by the Marine Corps aviation units along with tiltrotor MV-22B "Osprey" units. The mission of MCAS New River is to primarily support and enhance combat alert awareness of the Marine Corps Aviation Combat Element along with improving the quality of work for all assigned to the Air Station. Working on MCAS New River NC, are over 6000 marines, sailors and airmen along with nearly 700 civilian contractors.

History 
The base was originally 29 small parcels of land which were tobacco farms, the Department Of Defence (DoD) purchased the land for a little under $65,000 in 1941. On the 26th April 1944 the area of land around New River was commissioned Marine Corps Auxiliary Airfield Camp Lejeune. As World War II came to an end in 1945, Auxiliary Airfield Camp Lejeune was closed down and then went back to being an outlying airfield of MCAS Cherry Point. In 1951 the airfield was reactivated and was renamed Marine Corps Air Facility Peterfield Point, but a little over a year later the base was renamed again to Marine Corps Air Facility New River. In 1954 the first operational units began to arrive and these were known as Marine Aircraft Group 26 (MAG-26) which transferred in from nearby MCAS Cherry Point. In 1968 was recommissioned as Marine Corp Air Station New River.

Motto 
Marine Corps Air Station New River "Pardon Our Noise It's The Sound Of Freedom"

VMM Mission
"Provide Assault Transport of combat troops, supplies and equipment across the spectrum of Expeditionary Operations"

Tenant Commands
Marine Aircraft Group 26 (MAG-26) units
VMM-162 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Sqn MV-22B
VMM-261 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Sqn MV-22B
VMM-263 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Sqn MV-22B
VMM-264 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Sqn MV-22B
VMM-266 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Sqn MV-22B
VMM-365 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Sqn MV-22B
VMMT-204 Marine Meduim Tiltrotor Training Sqn MV-22B
MALS-26 Marine Aviation Logistics Support (ground)
MWSS-272 Marine Wing Support Sqn (ground) 

Marine Aircraft Group 29 (MAG-29) units
HMH-366 Marine Heavy Helicopter Sqn CH-53E
HMH-461 Marine Heavy Helicopter Sqn CH-53E
HMH-464 Marine Heavy Helicopter Sqn CH-53E
HMLA-167 Marine Light Attack Helicopter Sqn UH-1Y/AH-1W
HMLA-269 Marine Light Attack Helicopter Sqn UH-1Y/AH-1W
HMHT-302 Marine Heavy Helicopter Training Sqn CH-53E
MALS-29 Marine Aviation Logistics Support (ground)
MWSS-274 Marine Wing Support Sqn (ground) 
(note-AH-1Ws will convert to AH-1Zs by the end of 2018)

Safety Day
Our visit in November 2017 was during one of the base's ground safety day's which means very little flying, plenty of aircraft maintenance, classroom work and briefings for the aircrews and pilots. Over the full day on base access was granted to visit four operational squadrons each providing presentations on their individual units and the type of aircraft they fly, all units seen provided in depth on the ground access to the safety work and maintenance provided by their maintainers and ground staff, the checking and re-checking of paperwork as to the Marine Corps safety procedures was very evident. Helicopters and MV-22Bs were visited from the units with in depth up close inside the aircraft briefings and walk around tours outside.

Squadrons visited were:
VMMT-204 MV-22B "Raptors"
HMH-366 CH-53E "Hammerheads"
HMLA-167 AH-1W & UH-1Y "Warriors"
HMLA-269 AH-1W & UH-1Y "Gun Runners"


MAG-26 and MAG-29 which form only part of the 2nd Marine Air Wing (2nd MAW) have a great sense of pride in the work they perform at MCAS New River and the mission role whilst deployed away from New River within the 2nd MAW, the work behind the scene's to keep this Marine Air Group flying is complex,in depth and ultimately rewarding to all that serve on MCAS New River.

Air Park
As well as the many varied units that operate on MCAS New River, the base also provides for it's staff, families and visitor's an excellent Aviation Memorial Air Park just behind the main entrance gate on Curtiss road. The park has six exhibits on display; Bell AH-1J, Bell UH-1N, Sikorsky UH-34D, Boeing CH-46E, Sikorsky CH-53A and a Boeing MV-22B all are viewable upon request. All aircraft in the park have at sometime in their active life served with the unit's based upon New River.

AviationReporting would like to thank our hosts from each unit on MCAS New River, Command MCAS Cherry Point for granting access and Captain Roberts for being our host and tour guide whilst visiting the base.

Author Mark Forest 
Photography- M Forest, G Gissing and V Stoneham
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