Always a Marine.... shout out to all my fellow Marine OFers.... A very Happy 242 birthday tomorrow. First to fight ! And a great weekend to all-the- service Veterans this weekend as well. Your service was honorable; no matter the conflict. No matter the billet/MOS... sometimes I still wish I was a young Sgt. At HMX1 Quantico wearing my Casio.
I did a year in A and C schools ...then shipped over to HMX1,from 3MAG in ( what was ) El Toro, CA. I was an Aviation Avionics tech for the Presidential Helicopter Squadron. Great times. Many thanks.
Last time I was in the Q town area was at least a dozen years.. i was able to get on the base .. after chatting up the Cpl. in the guard shack... But I couldn’t get to the airfield side of the base ( The ole “Brown Field) ... that was restricted.
Fixed wing. Fighter and Attack cuc So it was El Toro. Near the old car racetrack ( Orange County if I remember) Tustin was rotary... I think it’s all at Miramar now. I’m in San Diego often for biz; I need to shoot over there...
One of my brothers flew CH46s out of Tustin in the early 80s. Also had a cousin who ended up a Lt Colonel, served in Korea.
I loved fixing the Frogs ( CH-46)... most people think of HNX1 just flying the CH53s. But we had 46s and Huey’s too. My Dad served, like your cousin - in Korea. During the famous “frozen Chosin” battle with the 1/1/C .. Guadalcanal division. Platoon Sgt Light machine gun. DIED in Korea in Sept. 2000 while there with his buddies; ostensibly for the 50th anniversary... just had a quiet heart attack on the bus heading to Inchon. Surreal
Yup Tustin and El Toro are closed. The Blimp hangers at Tustin are still there but most of both bases are houses now.