VMA-124

Squadron logo from World War II

VMF-124 was formed on 2 September 1942 at Camp Kearney, San Diego, California. They were declared fully operational on 28 December 1942 even though the squadron’s pilots had only an average of 25 hours each in the plane. They arrived on Guadalcanal on the morning of February 12, 1943 led by their commanding officer, Major William Gise. The squadron flew their first mission before lunch that day, with twelve F4Us escorting a PBY Catalina on a 230 mile mission to pick up two downed pilots at Sandfly Bay, Vella Lavella.[3]

VMF-124 Corsairs on Guadalcanal.

The first F4U pilot to be decorated with the Medal of Honor came from VMF-124 — 1st Lt Kenneth A. Walsh for a mission on August 30, 1943, during which he shot down four Japanese Zeros before ditching his borrowed Corsair.[4] The squadron remained in the Solomon Islands until September 1943, fighting over the Russell Islands, New Georgia and Vella Levella.

Following the fighting in the Solomons, the squadron was disbanded and reconstituted back in the United States where it trained in the Mojave Desert at Marine Corps Auxiliary Airfield Mojave for the next year.[5] When they received their orders for carrier assignments they had 5 combat experienced pilots as their training nucleus[6] VMF-124 left the States again on 18 September 1944, heading to Hawaii. While in Hawaii they were attached to Carrier Air Group 4 who were operating off the aircraft carrier USS Essex (CV-9). Along with VMF-213, 124 became the first Marine squadron to be based on a fleet aircraft carrier.[7] While deployed aboard the Essex, they took part in fighting over Lingayen, Luzon, Formosa, Tokyo, Iwo Jima and Okinawa. On 3 January 1945 VMF-124 and VMF-213 struck Formosa and the Ryukyu Islands in the first Marine land strike off a carrier.

The squadron was reformed shortly after the war at Naval Air Station Memphis and were equipped with the F4U-4 Corsair. They were the first squadron in the newly formed Marine Air Reserve Training Command to reach full strength. The squadron was redesignated Marine Attack Squadron 124 (VMA-124) on May 1, 1965 and were subsequently equipped with the A-4 Skyhawk. During the 1970s and 1980s they flew various versions of the A-4 until 1994 when the squadron was moved to Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth and redesignated Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 124 (VMFA-124). The squadron existed as a paper squadron only for two years while awaiting F/A-18 Hornets that would never materialize. The squadron existed on paper only until they were finally deactivated in 1999.[8]