2nd Marine Aircraft Wing was commissioned in July 1941 and originally headquartered in San Diego, California, with squadrons split between San Diego and Hawaii.
Unit History / Marine Aviation Combat Element
2nd Marine Aircraft Wing
2nd Marine Aircraft Wing is the East Coast Marine aviation wing aligned to II Marine Expeditionary Force. This page is the aviation hub: HMLA-269 and any aircraft groups added later are organized here as subordinate aviation pages, while each chain of command still keeps one active unit assignment.
Common Abbreviation2nd MAW / 2d MAW
Higher HeadquartersII Marine Expeditionary Force
Parent Wing ContextAll HMLA / aviation squadron pages live as subordinate unit pages here
Current SubgroupHMLA-269 Gunrunners · MAG-29 · H-1 light attack squadron
HISTORY
Public Historical Breakdown
Hawaii-based squadrons suffered heavy damage during the attack on Pearl Harbor, but the wing went on to support extensive South Pacific operations and major campaigns including Wake Island, Midway, Guadalcanal, Saipan, Tinian, Guam, and Okinawa.
Marine aviation wings developed as MAGTF aviation combat elements, integrating offensive air support, assault support, antiair warfare, reconnaissance, electronic warfare, and air-control functions.
2nd MAW units supported combat and contingency operations across Southwest Asia, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Horn of Africa missions, including fixed-wing, rotary-wing, tiltrotor, command-and-control, and aviation logistics support.
The wing continues to generate aviation readiness for II MEF through aircraft groups, squadrons, wing support units, and expeditionary aviation training tied to distributed operations and MAGTF integration.
SUBGROUPS
Aviation Units Under 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing
This is the place to add aircraft groups in the future. HMLA, VMM, VMFA, VMGR, MWSS, MACS, MASS, LAAD, and later aviation groups belong here as subordinate pages instead of separate top-level Unit History entries.
MOS
Common MOS Lanes
This page focuses on Marine aviation command, aviation support, aircraft control, and H-1 light attack support lanes that connect HMLA-269 to the larger wing.
PIPELINE
Training Pipeline Overview
Marine Officer / Aviator Track
Marine aviators begin as commissioned officers, complete The Basic School, then enter the naval aviation training system before earning wings and moving into platform-specific fleet replacement training.
H-1 Light Attack Track
AH-1S and UH-1Y pilots progress through rotary-wing training, H-1 platform training, and squadron-level qualifications such as aircraft commander, section lead, instructor, or weapons-and-tactics development.
Air Control And Support
Air traffic control, direct air support, tactical air command-and-control, communications, and aviation ground support Marines enable wing operations from established bases and expeditionary sites.
MAGTF Integration
Wing units support the MAGTF with offensive air support, assault support, aerial reconnaissance, electronic warfare, control of aircraft and missiles, and expeditionary aviation sustainment.
PROFILES
Chain of Command Linked Through This Wing
To keep roster integrity clean, each member still has only one active unit assignment. 2nd MAW is shown here as the parent-wing association for aviation profiles attached to HMLA-269.
1stLt Kane “Hollywood” WestSOURCES