VMA-233

Marine Attack Squadron 233
Marine Attack Squadron 233
	VMSB-233's WWII insignia
Active	1 May 1942 – 10 Mar 1946; August 1946 - 1969;
Country	United States
Branch	T2V SeaStar

Marine Attack Squadron 233 (VMA-233) was an

Reserves

but were again decommissioned in 1969.

History

The squadron was originally formed on 1 May 1942, at

SBD-4 Dauntless.^[3]^[4] They deployed overseas in December 1942 on board the seaplane tender USS Wright and first debarked at Espiritu Santo.^[5] From 25 December 1942, until 8 February 1943, they operated from Henderson Field on Guadalcanal as part of the Cactus Air Force.^[6]

They were reorganized as Marine Torpedo Bombing Squadron 233 (VMTB-233) on 22 May 1943, but the official re-designation of the squadron did not take place until 13 June, when they had returned to the United States.

Battle of New Georgia the squadron was moved to Munda in New Georgia to conduct raids that would help cut off the Japanese garrison at Rabaul. While in the New Georgia area, they also operated from Piva Airfield and Torokina Airfield.^[3]

Photo of Simpson Harbor being attacked by other allied air units in November 1943

On 14 February 1944, Avengers from VMTB-233 and

medical neglect, and a fourth was murdered by the Japanese Navy sometime in April.^[11]

In April 1944, they returned to the United States and were stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Santa Barbara, California. During their time at MCAS Santa Barbara they trained as part of the Marine Corps' new escort carrier program. They were assigned to Marine Carrier Air Group 1 (MCVG-1) where they were partnered with VMF-511 on the USS Block Island. The squadron left the West Coast on 20 March 1945.^[3] During this time the squadron's commanding officer, Major Robert Vaupell, was killed in a crash in February 1945.^[12]

VMTB-233 saw its first action during the Battle of Okinawa on 5 May 1945, when it conducted rocket and bomb runs against Japanese strongpoints in the vicinity of Naha. Their mission alternated between close air support for the Marines fighting on the ground and strikes against Sakashima Gunto, a kamikaze base complex some 175 miles southwest of Okinawa on Miyako Island.^[13]

In mid-June, the Block Island was relieved from the coast of Okinawa and ordered to

Formosa

. A USMC ace of VMA-233 was Lt William Hood who was lost while flying over Lake Michigan 4 August 1946.

Following World War II, the squadron returned to the United States, was briefly assigned to Marine Aircraft Group 46 (MAG-46) and was finally decommissioned on 1 March 1946, as part of the post war draw-down of forces.^[3]

Reserve years

The squadron was quickly reactivated later in 1946 as part of the

Naval Air Station Norfolk, Virginia. In October 1951 the unit was called to active duty for the Korean War, but it did not see action during the conflict. They were officially decommissioned in 1969.^[14]

Notes

^ "A-4 Skyhawk USN & USMC Tail Codes". Cybermodeler Online. Retrieved 20 December 2007.
^ Sherrod 1952, pp. 433.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Crowder 2000, pp. 104–105.
^ Sherrod 1952, pp. 464.
^ "Wright". Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships. Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. 13 April 2005. Retrieved 20 December 2007.
^ Rottman 2002, pp. 459.
^ Rottman 2002, pp. 442.
^ "Henderson Field (Honiara Airport)". Pacific Wreck Database. www.pacificwrecks.org. Retrieved 20 December 2007.
^ Foster 1961, pp. 192–193.
^ "Monday, 14 February 1944". This month in WWII Pacific History. www.pacificwrecks.org. Archived from the original on 30 October 2006. Retrieved 20 December 2007.
^ "TBF-1 Avenger Bureau Number 06311". Pacific Wreck Database. www.pacificwrecks.org. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
^ Shettle 2001, pp. 149.
^ Condon 1998, pp. 97–99.
^ "HMM-774 Mission Statement". United States Marine Corps. Archived from the original on 28 December 2007. Retrieved 20 December 2007.