Photo By Lance Cpl. Jennifer Sanchez | U.S. Marines and aircraft with Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing,...... read more read more
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MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. – Marines and squadrons from 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing have been recognized with 12 Marine Corps Aviation Association 2025 Aviation Awards, honoring their exceptional leadership and dedication to mission accomplishment. The highly competitive awards program spans 30 categories across the Marine aviation enterprise.
“This accomplishment reflects the commitment and high standards of our Marines,” said Maj. Gen. James Wellons, commanding general of 3rd MAW. “Our Marines are truly the best at what they do, and it’s a real honor to see this widespread recognition for our 3d MAW award winners within the competitive arena of Marine aviation.”
Each award is named in honor of a pioneering Marine aviator, celebrating excellence across aviation occupational specialties. The Alfred A. Cunningham Award, named for the first Marine aviator and director of Marine Corps Aviation, honors the Marine Aviator of the Year. This year’s recipient is Maj. Zachary M. Sessa of Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 314.
VMFA-314 added to the distinction as the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron of the Year, receiving the Robert M. Hanson Award—an honor commemorating the master of individual air combat who downed 20 enemy planes in six consecutive flying days during World War II. Eighty-one years later, the “Black Knights” conducted multiple strikes on Houthi weapons storage facilities within Yemen, marking the first use of the F-35C Lightning II in combat operations.
During the Black Knights’ 2024 deployment to 7th and 5th Fleet areas of responsibility, Sessa led multiple combat sorties in Yemen and served as the Corps’ first F-35C Weapons and Tactics Instructor integrated with the U.S. Navy’s Carrier Strike Group 3. He simultaneously led the squadron in conducting deterrence missions while generating two Lightning Tactics Instructors, two Low Altitude Instructors, three Air Combat Maneuvering Instructors, six section leads, four division leads, and one mission commander—multiplying capabilities across the fifth-generation fighter community.
“My recognition with the Alfred A. Cunningham Award is the result of the hard work and dedication of the team I’ve had the privilege to serve alongside,” Sessa said.
This year’s MCAA Awards debuted the James W. Frey Award and the Pioneer Award, recognizing the Marine Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) Officer of the Year and the Marine Enlisted UAS Sensor Operator of the Year, respectively.
Both awardees belong to Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron (VMU) 1—which won Marine UAS Squadron of the Year with the John I. Hudson Award, honoring the Marine fighter and reconnaissance pilot who was awarded a Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V” and 25 Air Medals during the Vietnam War.
In August 2021, VMU-1 became the first Marine Corps unit to procure the MQ-9A Reaper, a remotely piloted aircraft capable of conducting multiple mission sets—including multi-sensor imagery reconnaissance, unmanned aerial escort, and electronic support. Based at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, VMU-1 is uniquely positioned to enable naval and joint force targeting remotely. A Marine aviator and sensor operator can control the aircraft from Yuma, even while it operates within another combatant command’s area of responsibility, enabling flexible, long-range mission execution from across the globe.
In 2024, the "Watchdogs” supported vital U.S. national security interests in contingency, crisis, and combat operations in both United States Central Command and United States Indo-Pacific Command, amassing over 1,130 flight hours across more than 187 sorties. Pioneering a new capability, VMU-1 became the first Marine Corps unit to remotely launch and recover an aircraft in an operational environment.
Maj. Fabio Garciaquiroga is the inaugural recipient of the James W. Frey Award. As an MQ-9A pilot with VMU-1, he played a pivotal role in planning and executing classified named operations, demonstrating tactical precision as pilot in command during kinetic strikes, facilitating rapid battle damage assessments, and enabling follow-on strikes with unmatched efficiency. Garciaquiroga’s efforts led to the successful integration of advanced payloads, maximizing intelligence collection while maintaining aircraft survivability in high-risk environments. The award reflects the spirit of the Marine colonel whose visionary work laid the foundation for today’s UAS operations, including validation of UAS combat employment in Iraq and Afghanistan, creation of the Marine UAS officer designation, and UAS-specific training pipelines.
“I’m honored to be the first recipient of the James W. Frey Award, but the real credit belongs to the Marines who built this community through countless deployments, sorties, and missions across the globe,” Garciaguiroga said.
Staff Sgt. Christian Hurtado is the inaugural Pioneer Award recipient. As a Weapons Training Officer with VMU-1, he instructed 25 Marines through more than 75 training events. In 2024, Hurtado accumulated more than 700 MQ-9A flight hours across 266 sorties supporting contingency operations and unit level progression. His decisiveness and mastery of the aircraft resulted in the success of multiple classified maritime domain awareness operations, including combat hours. The award honors the legacy of the RQ-2 Pioneer, a UAS operated by all-enlisted crews within the Marine Corps from 1986 to 2007. Throughout its 30-year history, Pioneer crews were integral to success in the Gulf War, Global War on Terror, and a range of humanitarian missions.
“I have a great passion for unmanned aviation,” Hurtado said. “I try to give back to my unit and the MQ-9 community by making it one percent better every day.”
Among the 12 unit and individual awards earned by 3rd MAW, several squadrons are recognized as best in breed:
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 314: Robert M. Hanson Award (Marine Fighter Attack Squadron of the Year)
Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron (HMH) 466: Keith B. McCutcheon Award (Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron of the Year)
Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron (HMLA) 367: John P. Giguere Award (Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron of the Year)
Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron (VMU) 1: John I. Hudson Award (Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron of the Year)
Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron (MALS) 39: Donald E. Davis Award (Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron of the Year)
Marine Wing Support Squadron (MWSS) 371: James E. Hatch Award (Marine Wing Support Squadron of the Year)
Additionally, the following Marines are recognized for their outstanding performance:
Maj. Zachary M. Sessa, VMFA-314: Alfred A. Cunningham Award (Marine Aviator of the Year)
Maj. John P. Baum, VMFA-232: Robert Guy Robinson Awad (Marine Naval Flight Officer of the Year)
Maj. Fabio Garciaquiroga, VMU-1: James W. Frey Award (Marine Unmanned Aerial Systems Officer of the Year)
Staff Sgt. Christian Hurtado, VMU-1: Pioneer Award (Marine Enlisted UAS Sensor Operator of the Year)
Staff Sgt. Douglas R. Gantt, VMFA-122: Willie D. Sproule Award (Aviation Maintenance Marine of the Year)
Sgt. Amy J. Zetino, MALS-13: Kenneth W. Southcomb Award (Aviation Supply Marine of the Year)
As the Marine Corps’ largest air wing, 3rd MAW maintains its legacy of excellence and global power projection. The awards are expected to be formally presented at the 53rd Annual MCAA Symposium in Dallas, Texas from May 13 to 15.
| Date Taken: | 04.23.2025 |
| Date Posted: | 04.23.2025 15:07 |
| Story ID: | 496000 |
| Location: | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA, US |
| Web Views: | 97 |
| Downloads: | 1 |
This work, New Heights: 3rd MAW Marines, squadrons earn top aviation awards, by 1LT James Estillore, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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