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CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. – After completing an extended eight-month deployment, the Marines and Sailors assigned to the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) (26th MEU(SOC)) Aviation Combat Element (ACE) will return their MV-22s to flight status Mar. 17, 2024, following Naval Air Systems Command’s (NAVAIR) announcement that deemed the aircraft safe to fly following an extensive engineering analysis.
From July to December 2023, prior to the grounding, the MV-22s successfully flew more than 1,100 flight hours and significantly contributed to the successful movement and transportation of more than 5,600 passengers and 1.6 million pounds of cargo during distributed aviation operations in U.S. European Command (USEUCOM), U.S. Africa Command (USAFRICOM), and U.S. Central Command (USCENTCOM).
"Throughout our deployment across the Tri-COCOM area of operations, the versatility, reach, and operational flexibility provided by having four of our MV-22s on the LPD [USS Mesa Verde] and eight MV-22s on the LHD [USS Bataan] have been essential to our overall success as a naval expeditionary crisis response force within both U.S. 6th Fleet and U.S. 5th Fleet areas of operations,” said Col. Dennis “Dolf” Sampson, Commanding Officer of the 26th MEU(SOC).
The MV-22B remains an instrumental aviation platform within the 26th MEU(SOC) ACE contributing to successful operations and activities from Norway, the Baltics, the Mediterranean Sea, to the Horn of Africa, and Arabian Gulf in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, Operation Freedom’s Sentinel, Operation Prosperity Guardian and other requirements of the Geographic Combatant Commander.
“Throughout the grounding, our Marines have remained engaged in conducting maintenance to improve the materiel readiness of the aircraft,” said Lt. Col. Larry Buzzard, Commanding Officer of the 26th MEU(SOC) ACE, VMM-162 (REIN). “Our aircrew completed ground turns and we deployed several MV-22 pilots from U.S. 6th Fleet to Marine Corps Air Station New River to gain valuable simulator refresher training to prepare for the resumption of flight operations. As we redeploy the aircrew and aircraft following eight months of sea, safety remains the top priority during our homecoming.”
The 26th MEU(SOC) will resume MV-22 flight operations as part of the Marine Air Ground Task Force (MAGTF) offload and redeployment following an extended deployment. Marines of the ACE have continued to conduct maintenance, ground turns, and classroom and simulator training to sustain readiness in preparation for the return to flight.
“Throughout the deployment, the ACE put in a lot of work and successfully sustained high materiel and training readiness across all type, model, series. More so, during the grounding, the squadron took a deliberate approach and actions to maintain our aircrew readiness in preparation for the MV-22 return to flight. It’s good to have the MV-22s back flying again,” Sampson concluded.
The ACE's efforts during the deployment led to VMM-162 (Reinforced) being recognized as Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron of the Year March 14, 2024, culminating their efforts of conducting distributed aviation operations across the six functions of aviation during a successful 2023-2024 deployment across the Tri-Geographic Combatant Command region.
During the redeployment., VMM-162 (Reinforced) will conduct a fly-off of the AV-8Bs, MV-22Bs, CH-53Es, AH-1Zs, and UH-1Ys to Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point and Marine Corps Air Station New River. The MV-22s will conduct flight operations from the USS Bataan (LHD 5) and USS Mesa Verde (LPD 19) as part of the redeployment fly-off back to their home station aboard Marine Corps Air Station New River.
The 26th MEU(SOC) serves as one of the United States' premier crisis response forces capable of conducting amphibious operations, crisis response, and limited contingency operations, including enabling the introduction of follow-on forces and designated special operations, in support of theater requirements of the Geographic Combatant Commander. The 26th MEU(SOC) serves as a premier stand-in force with the unique all-domain operational capabilities necessary to compete and win within an adversary's littorals and weapons engagement zones in any clime or place.
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| Date Taken: | 03.15.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 03.15.2024 14:06 |
| Story ID: | 466305 |
| Location: | US |
| Web Views: | 134 |
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