Fighting Falcons – Peter Owen

While he was executive officer of VMF-122 on Guadalcanal in December 1942, flying alone, Post attacked three Nakajima E8N “Dave” seaplanes. Though wounded in the fight, Post downed all three.2 Eight more aviators joined the squadron at Efate. Fortunately, not all were untested. Capt. Alonzo B. Treffer had flown in combat with VMF-213. First Lt. Warren P. Nichols had achieved three victories, and 1st Lt. George E. Moore had scored one with VMF-124. By the time VMF-221 returned to combat, it had thirty aviators, or one and a half pilots per aircraft, and all but five were veterans.

Post organized his pilots into seven divisions, with two aviators as spares.3 From 4 September to 10 October the squadron trained for combat. After familiarization flights the squadron practiced gunnery and interception problems when weather permitted and instrument flying in SNJs. Unlike the two previous training periods, the squadron suffered no mishaps. On 9 October, the squadron stayed on the ground and formed ranks as Major General Mitchell presented Captain Swett with the Medal of Honor for his aerial feats on 7 April.4 On 11 October the pilots returned to Banika by transport aircraft, leaving their ground echelon and aircraft in Efate.

Two days later they rode another transport to Munda airfield on New Georgia, now in U.S. hands.5 Bougainville Operational Situation Halsey had set 2 November as D-day for Bougainville. The purpose of the Bougainville operation was to establish airfields from which AirSols, now under Maj. Gen. Nathan F. Twining, USAAF, could join the long-range bombers of Gen. George C. Kenney’s Fifth Air Force in strikes against Rabaul.

Titles in the Series Delivering Destruction: American Firepower and Amphibious Assault from Tarawa to Iwo Jima OceanofPDF.com STUDIES IN MARINE CORPS HISTORY AND AMPHIBIOUS WARFARE William A. Taylor, editor This series advances understanding of Marine Corps history and amphibious warfare by publishing original scholarship across a broad spectrum of innovative studies. The series analyzes an extensive array of vital aspects of the Marine Corps, amphibious warfare, and their collective role in global security, including battles, leaders, strategy, operations, tactics, doctrine, technology, personnel, organization, and culture.

Incorporating both historical and contemporary perspectives, this series publishes important literature about the Marine Corps and significant works relevant to amphibious warfare that span the globe, feature diverse methodologies, and reach general audiences. As a result, the series provides a professional home, central venue, and premier destination for the best and newest research on Marine Corps history and amphibious warfare. OceanofPDF.com FIGHTING FALCONS THE CAMPAIGNS OF VMF-221 IN THE PACIFIC PETER F. OWEN Naval Institute Press Annapolis, Maryland OceanofPDF.com Naval Institute Press 291 Wood Road Annapolis, MD 21402 © 2026 by the U.S.

Naval Institute All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN: 978-1-68247-823-3 (hardcover) ISBN: 978-1-68247-841-7 (eBook) Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available.

♾ Print editions meet the requirements of ANSI/NISO z39.48-1992 (Permanence of Paper). Printed in the United States of America. 34 33 32 31 30 29 28 27 26 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 First printing Maps and figure created by Peter F. Owen.

This is a short excerpt from the opening of “” by Unknown, quoted for review and introduction purposes. All rights belong to the copyright holders.

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• File Extension: .pdf
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• Title: –
• Author: Unknown
• ISBN: 9781682478233, 9781682478417
• Pages: 340
• Language: English (en)

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