VMF(N)-534

Marine Night Fighter Squadron 534 (VMF(N)-534) was a United States Marine Corps night fighter squadron that was commissioned during World War II. It was the fourth night fighter squadron commissioned in the service[2] and participated in limited combat operations throughout 1944 and 1945 during Marine Corps operations over Kwajalein Atoll and the Mariana Islands.[3][4] The squadron was decommissioned on May 31, 1947, as part of the post-war draw down of the service. Since then, no other Marine Corps squadron has carried the lineage and honors of VMF(N)-534.

Marine Night Fighter Squadron 534
VMF(N)-534 Insignia
ActiveOct 1, 1943 - May 31, 1947[1]
Country United States of America
Branch United States Marine Corps
TypeNight fighter squadron
RoleAir interdiction
Garrison/HQInactive
ColorsWF (WWII)
BV (1946-47)
EngagementsWorld War II
Aircraft flown
FighterF6F-3N Hellcat
F7F-2N Tigercat

History

Commissioning, training and, deployment

VMF(N)-534 was commissioned on October 1, 1943, at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina on the authority of Marine Corps Dispatch 292038, dated September 23, 1943.[5][2] The squadron received its first F6F-3N night fighter on December 1, 1943, and commenced training in eastern North Carolina until departing for the west coast on April 1, 1944.[2] Squadron member arrived at Marine Corps Air Depot Miramar between April 4–7 and later departed Naval Air Station North Island, San Diego on April 19, 1944, on board the USS Breton (CVE-23).[2]

Operations in the Central Pacific
An F6F-5N from VMF(N)-534 preparing to taxi.

The squadron arrived at Naval Advance Base Espiritu Santo on May 4, 1944, and flew into Luganville Airfield the next day joining Marine Aircraft Group 21.[2] It remained there for nearly a month before the flight echelon departed on June 2, 1944, on the USS Santee (CVE-29).[2] The squadron's ground personnel were split between the USS Cetus (AK-77), SS Typhoon, and the SS Young.[2] After 65 days at sea, VMF(N)-534's, as part of Marine Aircraft Group 21, took off from the USS Santee, becoming the first aviation unit to land on Guam as they touched down on Orote Field on August 4, 1944.[6] The first combat air patrols commenced on August 7, 1944.[4] That same evening VMF(N)-534 also conducted its first night raids when a section of aircraft strafed the Japanese garrison on Rota. Between August 7 and December 29 the squadron conducted a total of eight strafing/bombing missions against Rota Island.[2] While on Guam squadron personnel conducted numerous patrols and assisted in burying Japanese war dead. From August 4 through December 31, VMF(N)-534 flew 1402 sorties totaling 2,610.6 hours of flying conducting nighttime CAP, strafing and bombing, and search missions. Test flight, fighter cover and ferrying missions accounted for another 491.6 hours.

On February 20, 1945, the squadron recorded its only aerial victory of the war when 1stLt Brett Roueche, aided by GCI controllers from Air Warning Squadron 2 stationed aboard a Navy destroyer, shot down a Nakajima C6N 110 miles west of Saipan.[7][3][4] In May 1945 the squadron sent a detachment to Kobler Field on Saipan and another to Eniwetok to provide night time cover for each respective area. Tri-site operations continued until the end of the war. The squadron consolidated back on Guam by September 22, 1945.

Return to the United States and reorganization

The squadron returned to the United States in November 1945 and joined up with the rest of Marine Aircraft Group 53 at Marine Corps Air Station Eagle Mountain Lake, Texas. On December 20, 1945, the squadron moved to Marine Corps Air Station El Centro, California joining Marine Aircraft Group 25. During the end of December VMF(N)-534 also began to receive its new F7F-3N night fighters. On January 21, 1946, all of the squadron's pilots boarded the USS Shangri-La to observe carrier qualifications by United States Navy pilots.

Aircraft accidents
  • August 7, 1944 - Capt Paul H. Todd, the squadron executive officer, went missing of the coast of Guam flying an F6F-5N.[2]
  • August 11, 1944 - 1st Lt Harley E. Croft was forced to bail out of his F6F-5N after its engine failed during a nighttime CAP.[2]
  • November 2, 1944 - 1stLt Percy L. Will's F6F-5N crashed at sea after having engine trouble while flying nighttime combat air patrol in the vicinity of Saipan.[2]
  • April 18, 1945 - Capt Charles F. Finnie died from injuries sustained when his F6F-5N crashed.

See also

Citations
  1. Rottman 2002, pp. 446.
  2. "History of Marine Night Fighting Squadron Five Thirty-Four 1 October 1943 - 31 December 1944, transmittal of". National Archives Catalog. VMF(N)-534. pp. 4–6. Retrieved 2022-06-01.
  3. Doll 2000, pp. 18.
  4. Crowder 2000, pp. 170.
  5. Sherrod 1952, pp. 474.
  6. Sherrod 1952, pp. 253.
  7. Tillman 2014, pp. 149.

References
Bibliography
  • Crowder, Michael J. (2000). United States Marine Corps Aviation Squadron Lineage, Insignia & History - Volume One - The Fighter Squadrons. Paducah, KY: Turner Publishing Company. ISBN 1-56311-926-9.
  • Doll, Thomas E. (2000). Night Wings, USMC Night Fighters 1942-1953. Squadron/Series Publications. ISBN 0897474198.
  • Rottman, Gordon L. (2002). U.S. Marine Corps World War II Order of Battle – Ground and Air Units in the Pacific War. Westport, Connecticut: Greenwood Press. ISBN 0313319065.
  • Sherrod, Robert (1952). History of Marine Corps Aviation in World War II. Washington, D.C.: Combat Forces Press.
  • Tillman, Barrett (2014). US Marine Corps Fighter Squadrons of World War II. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 1782004106.
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