U.S. Marines with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron (HMH) 461 conduct an external lift flight at Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, California, Jan. 23, 2025. HMH-461 and other squadrons assigned to 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing trained to integrate with and support Marine ground units during Service Level Training Event (SLTE) 1-25, a series of training events designed to prepare Marines for operations around the globe. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Anakin Smith)
A U.S. Marine Corps pilot with Marine Attack Squadron (VMA) 231 lands an AV-8B Harrier while the maintenance team with VMA-231 conducts checks and prepares the aircraft for the next mission at Naval Air Facility (NAF) El Centro, California, Jan. 29, 2025. U.S. Marines with VMA-231 deployed to NAF El Centro to conduct unit-level training and support to Marine ground units during Service Level Training Exercise 1-25, a series of exercises designed to prepare Marines for operations around the globe. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. David Ornelas Baeza)
Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 251, Marine Aircraft Group (MAG) 14, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW), reactivated during a ceremony on Thursday aboard Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Cherry Point, North Carolina, following a four-year, seven-month hiatus.
VMFA-251, known as the “Thunderbolts” or “T-Bolts,” was previously deactivated during a ceremony on April 23, 2020, aboard MCAS Beaufort, South Carolina, after returning from deployment in 2020 in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. The Thunderbolts’ deactivation concluded its 34 years as an F/A-18 Hornet squadron. The squadron was then relocated to MCAS Cherry Point to begin its transition to the F-35.
VMFA-251 received its first F-35C Lightning II Joint...
