Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 42 was a

reserve Reserve or reserves may refer to: Places * Reserve, Kansas, a US city * Reserve, Louisiana, a census-designated place in St. John the Baptist Parish * Reserve, Montana, a census-designated place in Sheridan County * Reserve, New Mexico, a US v ...

aviation logistics support unit of the

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expeditionar ...

. They fell under the command of

Marine Aircraft Group 42 Marine Aviation Training Support Group 42 (MATSG-42) is a United States Marine Corps Marine Forces Reserve, Reserve aviation unit based at Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida. The mission of MATSG-42 is to provide Marine Corps reserve componen ...

and

4th Marine Aircraft Wing The 4th Marine Aircraft Wing is the reserve airwing of the United States Marine Corps. It is headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana but its subordinate units are scattered throughout the United States. Mission Conduct air operations in sup ...

and were based at

Naval Air Station Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the county seat of Fulton County and extends into neighboring DeKalb County. With a population of 498,715 at the 2020 census and estimated at 520,070 in ...

. MALS-42 provided direct support to

VMFA-142 Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 142 (VMFA-142) was an aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps Reserve that was active from 1942 to 2008. At the time of its inactivation, the squadron was based at Naval Air Station Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. ...

and

HMLA-773 Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 773 (HMLA-773) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of Bell AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters and Bell UH-1Y Venom utility helicopters. The squadron is based at Joint Base McGuire– ...

and

Navy A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the military branch, branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral z ...

squadrons

VAW-77 Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 77 (VAW-77) "Nightwolves" was an aviation unit of the United States Navy Reserve based at Naval Air Station Atlanta from 1995-2008, then at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans from 2008-2013 an ...

and VR-46 and indirect support to two tactical Marine squadrons

Det A and

HMM-774 Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 774 (VMM-774) is a United States Marine Corps medium tiltrotor squadron consisting of V-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft. The squadron, known as the "Wild Goose", is a United States Marine Corps Reserve unit based at ...

. Due to a re-organization within Marine aviation, MALS-42 was deactivated in 2008.

Mission

Provide aviation logistics support to MAG-42 in garrison and contingencies to include (1) intermediate-level aviation maintenance, (2) aviation ordnance, (3) aviation supply, and (4) management information systems. As a unit, MALS-42 is also tasked to support the Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) mission during major regional conflicts.

History

1990s

MALS-49 Detachment B was redesignated MALS-42 (-) on 18 June 1992. MALS-42 consists of a headquarters unit, MALS-42(-), located at NAS Alameda, DET A located at

Marine Corps Air Station Miramar Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (MCAS Miramar) is a United States Marine Corps installation that is home to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, which is the aviation element of the I Marine Expeditionary Force. It is located in Miramar, a commu ...

, DET B located at

Naval Air Station Norfolk A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations ...

, and DET C located at

Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans is a base of the United States military located in Belle Chasse, unincorporated Plaquemines Parish, Louisiana, United States. NAS JRB New Orleans is home to a Navy Reserve aggressor squadron a ...

Louisiana Louisiana ( ; ; ) is a state in the Deep South and South Central regions of the United States. It borders Texas to the west, Arkansas to the north, and Mississippi to the east. Of the 50 U.S. states, it ranks 31st in area and 25 ...

. MALS-42 has provided aviation logistical support at CAX during annual training periods, conducted off-site training evolutions at MALS-14,

MALS-26 Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 26 (MALS-26) is an aviation logistics support unit of the United States Marine Corps. They are currently based at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina and fall under the command of Marine Aircraft ...

and MALS-39. In 1996, MALS-42 was tasked to draft the Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) Plan under which a Reserve Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron (MALS) would be activated to replace an intermediate level maintenance squadron during a Major Regional Conflict (MRC).

Global War on Terror

MALS-42 was activated 13 February 2003 and assigned to

3rd Marine Aircraft Wing The 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing (abbreviated as 3rd MAW) is the major west coast aviation unit of the United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, ...

in order to execute the Fleet Replacement Squadron (FRS) Mission in support of

Operation Iraqi Freedom The Iraq War (), also referred to as the Second Gulf War, was a prolonged conflict in Iraq lasting from 2003 to 2011. It began with the invasion by a United States-led coalition, which resulted in the overthrow of the Ba'athist governm ...

(OIF). As a unit, MALS-42 remained activated under the FRS until 12 February 2004. September 2003 found MALS-42 in receipt of orders to plan and execute the deployment of an MALS-42 detachment to

Bagram Air Base Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient town of Bagram at an elevation of a ...

, Afghanistan as part of

deployment in support of

Operation Enduring Freedom Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) was the official name used by the U.S. government for both the first stage (2001–2014) of the War in Afghanistan (2001–2021) and the larger-scale Global War on Terrorism. On 7 October 2001, in response ...

(OEF). As a whole three successive detachments supported combat operations until September 2005. On 29 August 2005, the squadron was called on to support

humanitarian relief Humanitarian aid is material and logistic assistance, usually in the short-term, to people in need. Among the people in need are the homeless, refugees, and victims of natural disasters, wars, and famines. The primary objective of humanitarian a ...

efforts in support of

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

. Forward deployed personnel participated forward for 30 days and continued to provide maintenance support up through 3 December 2005.

Notes

References