This is a very special year for the Tailhook Association, its 50th anniversary -- 50 years of promoting Tailhook Aviation and more importantly, Naval Aviation, which includes the Marine Corps Navy and Coast Guard.
This is also a meaningful year personally as I celebrate my 20-year association with Tailhook. Twenty years ago, my father, a Naval Aviator in World War II and a TBF Avenger pilot, gave me a three-year membership to the Tailhook Association as a birthday present. My father was very proud of his association with Naval Aviation. He had served in USS Princeton (CVL-23) as a member of Torpedo Squadron 27 and was on board that fateful day when Princeton was sunk by a Japanese bomb.
In November 2005, I was asked to attend the Tailhook Association board of directors meeting representing Col Earl "Pearl" Wederbrook. I figured my only responsibility was to take notes and report back to Pearl. Little did I know that the board members would put me on the spot and ask, "Why are Marine Aviators not joining the Tailhook Association?"
Being a good Marine, I stood in front of the board and shared my thoughts on not only Marine membership, but membership as a whole. At the close of the meeting, I was challenged to write an article for The Hook to help inspire and provide reasons why Marine Aviators should join the Tailhook Association.
Twenty years ago I asked my father, "Why are you giving me a membership to the Tailhook Association?" Paraphrasing his answer, he said, "You wear the Wings of Gold, and that makes you part of an elite club in the world of aviation. The Tailhook Association is an organization in which you will have a special bond with the men and women who make Naval Aviation strong and who protect this great nation of ours.
Marines in The Tailhook Association
After asking more questions, I had to ask the same question that is asked by so many in Marine Aviation. "Why me, I'm a Marine?" That day 20 years ago I heard his answer, but did not understand its true meaning. Over the years I have looked at my contributions to Naval Aviation, the contributions of the ones who came before me and ahead to its great future.
Carrier aviation is not something new to Marine Corps Aviation. From the beginning, Marine Aviation has been a part of the development of Naval Aviation. Every Marine Aviator traces this beginning to 1Lt Alfred Austell Cunningham who reported to the newly formed Navy Aviation training camp at Annapolis in 1912. In fact, in 1919 Capt Cunningham, the officer in charge of Marine Corps Aviation, presented to the General Board of the Navy a concept for Marine Corps aviators to operate from aircraft carriers before USS Langley (CV-1) had even launched. The intent of Capt Cunningham's suggestion was to support the Marine Corps to develop a mission of amphibious assault and advance sea basing.
The history began in 1931 for Navy and Marine Corps tactical aviation integration with VS-14M assigned to Saratoga (CV-3) and VS-15M to Lexington (CV-2). These squadrons helped supplement the Navy at the onset of the Great Depression when money was tight and squadrons were few. Marine fighter squadrons paid their dues on board carriers during World War II and even developed the idea of having Marine air groups on board CVs toward the end of that war. From 1945 to 1993, Marine Corps fixed-wing squadrons deployed more than 130 times on carriers to complement Navy air wings.
Tactical aviation integration in the last 10 years has seen more than 20 Marine F/A-18 fighter attack squadron deployments to support the Navy's deployment cycles. Marine AV-8B and helicopter air combat elements of the Marine Expeditionary Units (MEU) are deployed year-round on amphibious carriers all over the globe. Their locations, along with those of the big deck carriers, are the subject of the first question asked by the President of the United States when hot spots develop around the world.
The intent of this discussion is not to give a history lesson on Marine Aviation, but to make the reader aware that Marines have a rich tradition in carrier aviation. In 1956 several Naval officers wearing gold wings organized a party to celebrate tailhook aviation. Now, let's not kid ourselves -- this was a grand old party first and foremost, and I would expect nothing less. However, these officers envisioned that this organization had the potential of being a venue for the professional education of young Navy pilots. Mixing old aviators with young, along with aviation industry and forums to exchange ideas, developed over the years.
Today, their vision is a reality and the Tailhook Association's fostering of our profession is the best it has ever been. The 2005 Tailhook convention set records for attendance and corporate sponsorship, and you could still feel the spirit of the founding fathers when they gathered 50 years ago at Rosarito Beach, Mexico.
What You Can Do
Now you are probably saying, "Marine, what do you want me to do?" This article is not to solicit your membership -- we already have it. Old guys like me can pressure the young ones to join, but that is not my intention nor is it healthy for our association. This article is to challenge the young junior officer or company-grade officer who is a member to explain to his squadronmates why they should join the Tailhook Association. Talk to your fellow aviators in the ready room, the o' club or the wardroom and tell them of the importance of our organization -- not for the survival of the Tailhook Association, but for the betterment of Naval Aviation, both Marine Corps and Navy.
The Tailhook Association is going to be only as good as the youth of our profession make it. Guys like me will be members for life, but our ideas are becoming stale. This organization is not just for the Navy; it is an organization for all of Naval Aviation. As a Marine, I understand the importance of Marine Aviation. A Marine Aviator's sole reason for existence is to support the Marine rifleman. In 1929 Capt Cunningham understood the importance of a carrier to provide air support for the Marines engaged on the ground. That concept is just as important today.
The men and women who wear Wings of Gold are serving all over the world and are engaged in the War on Terror. They are on ships and they are on land. They wear Navy uniforms, Marine Corps uniforms and Coast Guard uniforms, but at the end of the day they all have the same mission -- ensure the security of the United States and its allies. The majority of these men and women are in the junior officer or company-grade ranks. This is definitely a young person's profession, being executed by a great generation of people who will be remembered for generations to come.
The Tailhook Association gives these young officers a great sounding board to bring back lessons learned, observations, and most importantly, new ideas on how to make our Navy/Marine Corps team stronger.
Tactical integration is nothing new in the Department of the Navy, for the Navy and Marine Corps have been fighting side by side for 230 years. We might have our differences and, yes, at times we don't get along -- but we all have our Wings of Gold that provide a common bond.
Capt William Nickerson, USMCR(Ret), writing in the Marine Corps Aviation Association Yellow Sheet about his 18 days serving with VF-10 during World War II, says it all.
"If decorations mean anything, then the four DFCs and nine Air Medals awarded to eight Marines during a brief 18 days of combat [with VF-10] say something. The letters of recommendation I received from VF-10's CO, LCDR Clarke, and VADM Marc A. Mitscher were not the usual "pro forma" letters. They told me that Marine pilots in Navy squadrons were accepted by the Navy, that we did our jobs well, and the Navy recognized that a difference in uniforms was no barrier when people knew what they were doing. All of us, Navy and Marine, had been Naval Aviation Cadets, then Naval Aviators before we became Marine or Navy officers. Beneath the uniforms we were brothers."
Col James "Balls" Stalnaker is currently commander of Marine Air Group 11 of the Third Marine Air Wing at MCAS Miramar. Col Stalnaker has made four carrier deployments and accumulated 738 carrier arrested landings. He has been a member of the Tailhook Association since 1986 and was selected as the first Marine Corps Tailhooker of the Year in 2001.