Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 39

Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 39 (MALS-39) is an aviation logistics

Logistics

Logistics is the management of the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of destination in order to meet the requirements of customers or corporations. Logistics involves the integration of information, transportation, inventory, warehousing, material handling, and packaging, and...

support unit of the United States Marine Corps

United States Marine Corps

The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...

. Known as the "Hellhounds", they fall under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 39

Marine Aircraft Group 39

Marine Aircraft Group 39 is a United States Marine Corps aviation unit based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California that is currently composed of six AH-1W Super Cobra and UH-1N Huey light attack squadrons, three CH-46 Sea Knight squadrons and one logistics squadron...

(MAG-39) and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing

3rd Marine Aircraft Wing

The 3d Marine Aircraft Wing is the major west coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps. It is headquartered at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California and provides the aviation combat element for I Marine Expeditionary Force...

(3rd MAW) and are currently based at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton

Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton

Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton or MCAS Camp Pendleton is a United States Marine Corps airfield located within Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California. It was commissioned in 1942 and is currently home to Marine Aircraft Group 39. The airfield is also known as Munn Field in honor of...

, California..

Mission

Provide aviation logistics support, guidance, planning and direction to Marine Aircraft Group squadrons on behalf of the commanding officer, as well as logistics support for Navy funded equipment in the supporting Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS), Marine Air Control Group (MACG), and Marine Aircraft Wing/Mobile Calibration Complex (MAW/MCC).

Provide intermediate level maintenance for aircraft and aeronautical equipment of all supported units and, when authorized, perform first-degree repair on specific engines.
Provide aviation supply support for aircraft and Navy-funded equipment to all supported units.
Provide Class V(a) ammunition logistics support to the MAG's squadrons. This support encompasses the requisitioning, storage, handling, assembly, transportation, and inventory reporting of Class V(a) ammunition. Be capable of planning for, and operating, an airfield ammunition issue point at expeditionary airfields.
Interpret, implement, audit, inspect, and provide oversight for the MAG, CO, of all policies and procedures relating to the administration and management of operations and maintenance, Navy funds, aviation supply, and aircraft.

Vietnam War

Provisional Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 39 was activated on 16 April 1968 at Marine Quang Tri

Quang Tri

Quảng Trị is a town district of Quang Tri province in the North Central Coastal region of Vietnam. Significantly, it was the only South Vietnamese provincial capital to be captured by the North Vietnamese forces for a limited period in the 1972 offensive....

Airfield, Republic of Vietnam. Assigned to Provisional Marine Aircraft Group 39

Marine Aircraft Group 39

(MAG-39) of the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing, the squadron's mission was to provide logistical support for the tactical squadrons and tactical elements located at Quang Tri, Dong Ha

Dong Ha

Đông Hà is the capital town of Quang Tri province, Vietnam. It is located at around . Dong Ha is situated at the crossroads of National Highway 1A and Route 9, part of the East-West Economic Corridor . It lies on the Reunification Express Railway and is served by Dong Ha Railway Station...

, And Khe Sanh

Khe Sanh

Khe Sanh is the district capital of Hướng Hoá District, Quảng Trị Province, Vietnam, located 63 km west of Đông Hà.Khe Sanh Combat Base was a United States Marine Corps outpost in South Vietnam used during the Vietnam War. The airstrip was built in September 1962...

. Provisional Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 39 was deactivated on 25 October 1969.

1980s and 1990s

Headquarters and Maintenance Squadron 39 was reactivated at Camp Pendleton, California on 1 September 1978 to provide support for the UH1 "Huey", AH1 "Cobra", and OV-10 "Bronco". The squadron was redesignated on 1 October 1988 as Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 39 (MALS-39). This changed placed aviation logistics support function firmly under the cognizance of one commanding officer to more efficiently and effectively serve the requirements of supported flying squadrons and Marine Air-ground Task Forces. MALS-39 provides all the aviation supply and intermediated level of aircraft maintenance, avionics, and ordnance support for nine flying squadrons. Additionally, whenever the flying squadrons deploy, whether in the United States or overseas, MALS-39 augments these squadrons with its Marines to ensure optimum aviation logistics support in every clime and place.
During the last ten years, Marines from MALS-39 have seen action throughout the world. Elements of the squadron participated in Operation Desert Storm and in the liberation of Kuwait

Kuwait

The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...

. Magicians also participated in Operation Restore Hope in Somolia Africa.

War on Terror

On January 2003, the squadron deployed as a command in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) both aboard the SS Curtiss (T-AVB-4)

SS Curtiss (T-AVB-4)

SS Curtiss is one of two Wright-class Aviation Logistics Support Container Ships built for the United States Navy in 1968. The sister ship is called the S.S. Wright....

aviation logistics support ship, and ashore at Ali Al Salem Air Base

Ali Al Salem Air Base

Ali Al Salem Air Base is a military airbase situated in Kuwait, approximately 23 miles from the Iraqi border. The airfield is owned by the Government of Kuwait, and during Operation Southern Watch and Operation Telic / Operation Iraqi Freedom hosted Royal Air Force , United States Air Force and...

, Kuwait and at various Forward Operating Bases throughout Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

. In February 2004, Magicians deployed as logistician augments to Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16

Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16

Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16 is an aviation logistics support unit of the United States Marine Corps. Known as the Forerunners, they are currently based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and fall under the command of Marine Aircraft Group 16 and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing .-Early...

, and as force protection augments to 3rd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion

3rd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion

The 3rd Low Altitude Air Defense Battalion is an air defense unit of the United States Marine Corps. It is part of Marine Air Control Group 38 and the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing and is currently based at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, California.-Mission:Provide close-in, low altitude,...

again in support of OIF. MALS-39 Marines continually deploy to the Western Pacific

Pacific Ocean

The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...

supporting unit deployments to Okinawa, Japan and Marine Expeditionary Unit

Marine Expeditionary Unit

A Marine expeditionary unit , formerly called Marine amphibious unit , is the smallest Marine air-ground task force in the United States Fleet Marine Force...

s afloat.

Awards

A unit citation or commendation is an award bestowed upon an organization for the action cited. Members of the unit who participated in said actions are allowed to wear on their uniforms the awarded unit citation. MALS-39 has been presented with the following awards:

Award	Year(s)	Additional Info
Presidential Unit Citation Streamer
Navy Unit Commendation Streamer Navy Unit Commendation The Navy Unit Commendation of the United States Navy is an award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944...
Meritorious Unit Commendation Streamer Meritorious Unit Commendation The Meritorious Unit Commendation is a mid-level unit award of the United States military which is awarded to any military command which displays exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service, heroic deeds, or valorous actions.... W/ 1 service star
National Defense Service Streamer National Defense Service Medal The National Defense Service Medal is a military service medal of the United States military originally commissioned by President Dwight D. Eisenhower... with two service stars	1967–1968, 1990–1995, 2001–present	Vietnam War Vietnam War The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of... , Gulf War Gulf War The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf... , War on Terrorism War on Terrorism The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...
Vietnam Service Streamer Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal is a military award which was created in 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The distinctive design was the creation of sculptor Thomas Hudson Jones, a former employee of the Army Institute of Heraldry. The medal is issued to recognize military service during... with one silver star
Global War on Terrorism Service Streamer Global War on Terrorism Service Medal The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal is a military award of the United States military which was created by Executive Order 13289 of President George W. Bush on March 12, 2003...	2001–present
Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm Streamer Vietnam Gallantry Cross The Vietnam Gallantry Cross was a military decoration of South Vietnam which wasestablished in August 1950. Also known as the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry, the Gallantry Cross was awarded to any military personnel who have accomplished deeds of valor or displayed heroic conduct while fighting an...
Vietnam Meritorious Unit Citation Civil Actions Streamer Vietnam Civil Actions Medal The Vietnam Civil Actions Medal was a decoration of South Vietnam which was first established in 1964. The decoration is a mid-level service award which was awarded to any member of the Vietnamese military who performed outstanding civic service to the state or who participated in civil service...

The squadron has also been recognized for its logistics accomplishments, winning the 1998 Secretary of Defense Maintenance Award (Medium Category) and the 2003 Marine Corps Aviation Association Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron of the Year Award.

External links

MALS-39’s official website