Stories

This identity design was created in adobe illustrator to represent the official unit insignia for 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, Feb. 12, 2025. The flying diamond insignia was first recognized during World War II as a shoulder patch. The patch was later mandated by the Commandant of the Marine Corps to represent all Marine Aircraft Wings.

2nd Marine Aircaft Wing

II Marine Expeditionary Force

Archive: April, 2005

050427-M-0000A-000.jpg -

Mechanics keep helos in shape

Pilots and crewchiefs are often in the spotlight because of their actions on the front lines, but they probably wouldn’t have reached that point without the hard work of helicopter mechanics. Again and again, these Marines ensure the birds stay in the air. They don’t wear flight suits; they’re generally in grease-stained coveralls, turning

Read More

AL ASAD, Iraq - Sergeant Douglas Acero an avionics technician with Marine Attack Squadron 311 stands in front of an AV-8B Harrier here April 29. Acero along with his fellow ?Tomcats? of VMA-311 are scheduled to return to Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., in May after a seven-month deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. - AL ASAD, Iraq - Sergeant Douglas Acero an avionics technician with Marine Attack Squadron 311 stands in front of an AV-8B Harrier here April 29. Acero along with his fellow ?Tomcats? of VMA-311 are scheduled to return to Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Ariz., in May after a seven-month deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom.

Fighter jet mech shares unique perspective of war

Every Marine a Rifleman. This phrase has special meaning for Sgt. Douglas Acero, an avionics technician serving with Marine Attack Squadron 311 from Yuma, Ariz.In November, after the battle of Fallujah, the fighter jet mechanic was plucked from his unit here and attached to Charlie Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment from Kaneohe Bay,

Read More

It was standing room only as Rabbi Seth Phillips, a lieutenant commander from the Naval Submarine Base in New London, Conn., leads more than 30 service members in the Seder meal here April 27. - It was standing room only as Rabbi Seth Phillips, a lieutenant commander from the Naval Submarine Base in New London, Conn., leads more than 30 service members in the Seder meal here April 27.

Observing Passover in Iraq

“Passover has a message for the conscience and the heart of all mankind. For what does it commemorate? It commemorates the deliverance of a people from degrading slavery, from most foul and cruel tyranny. It is God’s protest against unrighteousness,” says Morris Joseph in “Judaism As Creed and Life”. Passover began April 24 and what better place

Read More

050427-M-0000A-000.jpg -

Greensboro native has churchgoers dancing worries away

There aren’t many opportunities for service members here to remove themselves from the stressors of war. One Marine assigned to the headquarters squadron of Marine Aircraft Group 26 (Reinforced) wants to make a difference. Lance Cpl. Troy M. Gray, an administrative clerk on his first tour in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, uses his down time

Read More

AL ASAD, Iraq--A Marine inserts an IV needle into a fellow Marine. This training is necessary in the event a corpsman is tending to other patients in a combat situation. Close to 30 sailors make up the Marine Wing Support Squadrons 271 medical unit providing care for more than 1,200 Marines and sailors here. They utilize radiography equipment and have the ability to perform laboratory tests, issue medications, and provide the majority of preventive medicine for the forward operating bases of the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing. - AL ASAD, Iraq--A Marine inserts an IV needle into a fellow Marine. This training is necessary in the event a corpsman is tending to other patients in a combat situation. Close to 30 sailors make up the Marine Wing Support Squadrons 271 medical unit providing care for more than 1,200 Marines and sailors here. They utilize radiography equipment and have the ability to perform laboratory tests, issue medications, and provide the majority of preventive medicine for the forward operating bases of the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing.

Corpsmen keep Marines in the fight

Walking among the Marines, they stand ready to provide the urgent medical care needed in a forward operating location. They are well trained and demonstrate a high level of esprit de corps any Marine would appreciate. The corpsmen of Marine Wing Support Squadron 271, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, are prepared. They understand that the Marines of this

Read More

020409-M-0000A-001.jpg -

Dust in the wind: A wall of sand moves through Al Asad

Read More

AL ASAD, Iraq ? Aircraft recovery specialists from Marine Wing Support Squadron 271 hammer down cruciform stakes while relocating an expeditionary arresting gear trailer April 20. The stakes serve as anchoring supports for the gear during aircraft arrestments. - AL ASAD, Iraq ? Aircraft recovery specialists from Marine Wing Support Squadron 271 hammer down cruciform stakes while relocating an expeditionary arresting gear trailer April 20. The stakes serve as anchoring supports for the gear during aircraft arrestments.

All work, no horseplay for aircraft recovery specialists

It was so hot that even the lizards were afraid to leave their holes, regardless the job had to be done and the Marines were determined despite the rising mercury. They were slightly behind schedule, a sandstorm delayed their progress earlier in the week. So for the next few days time was of the essence. A job needed to get done and they were

Read More

AL ASAD, Iraq -- Ernest Alejandro, an airframes technician with the sustainment tactical assessment team of Bell Aerospace Services, Inc., installs flight controls on an AH-1W Super Cobra on April 20. Alejandro, from Harlingen, Texas, is one of the 13 Marine veterans who volunteered to come to Iraq and help get the AH-1W Super Cobra and UH-1N Huey helicopters back in the fight. - AL ASAD, Iraq -- Ernest Alejandro, an airframes technician with the sustainment tactical assessment team of Bell Aerospace Services, Inc., installs flight controls on an AH-1W Super Cobra on April 20. Alejandro, from Harlingen, Texas, is one of the 13 Marine veterans who volunteered to come to Iraq and help get the AH-1W Super Cobra and UH-1N Huey helicopters back in the fight.

Helicopter mechanics stay faithful to the Corps, return to Iraq

Hundreds of Marines spend the better part of their days here in a hangar or out on the flightline repairing and maintaining aircraft to have them ready for the next mission. Be it fighter jets or helicopters, for each hour the aircraft are in the air many hours of maintenance are required. It’s not an easy task, since the mission of the 2nd Marine

Read More

AL ASAD, Iraq--(Left to Right) Barbara Leoni, guitar, Lisa Haze, vocals, Sandra Walker, bass guitar, and Max Miller, drums, are The California Girls. The band entertained Marines here April 22. This performance was one stop as the band tours several locations in Iraq. The group has performed together for the past six years playing a blend of classic rock and surfer hits. - AL ASAD, Iraq--(Left to Right) Barbara Leoni, guitar, Lisa Haze, vocals, Sandra Walker, bass guitar, and Max Miller, drums, are The California Girls. The band entertained Marines here April 22. This performance was one stop as the band tours several locations in Iraq. The group has performed together for the past six years playing a blend of classic rock and surfer hits.

The California Girls play in the Iraqi sand

Marines from the most remote locations of Al Asad made the trip to the air base theater April 22. The all-female band known as The California Girls graced the stage for a riveting performance as the 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing packed the seats. Playing a classic blend of rock and surfer type tunes, the ladies of The California Girls moved the room

Read More

AL ASAD, Iraq ? Lieutenant Gen. Martin R. Berndt, U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Atlantic commander, pins a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal on Lance Cpl. Wesley M. Stapelman, a data systems technician assigned to the Aviation Information Systems Department of Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 26 (Reinforced). Stapelman, a Great Falls, Mont., native, is reinforcing MALS-26 out of MALS-13 from Marine Corps Air Station, Yuma, Ariz. - AL ASAD, Iraq ? Lieutenant Gen. Martin R. Berndt, U.S. Marine Corps Forces, Atlantic commander, pins a Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal on Lance Cpl. Wesley M. Stapelman, a data systems technician assigned to the Aviation Information Systems Department of Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 26 (Reinforced). Stapelman, a Great Falls, Mont., native, is reinforcing MALS-26 out of MALS-13 from Marine Corps Air Station, Yuma, Ariz.