Marine Wing Support Squadron 172

Marine Wing Support Squadron 172
MWSS-172's insignia
Active	16 June 1986 – present
Country	United States
Allegiance	United States of America
Branch	United States Marine Corps
Type	Aviation ground support squadron
Size	600+
Part of	Marine Wing Support Group 17 1st Marine Aircraft Wing
Garrison/HQ	Marine Corps Air Station Futenma
Nickname	"Firebirds"
Commanders
Current commander	LtCol Richard Steele

Marine Wing Support Squadron 172 (MWSS 172) is an aviation ground support unit of the United States Marine Corps. Known as the "Firebirds", they are based out of Marine Corps Air Station Futenma, Okinawa, Japan. The squadron is part of Marine Wing Support Group 17 and the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing.

Mission

Provide all essential Aviation Ground Support requirements to a designated rotary-wing component of a Marine Aviation Combat Element. Additionally, an implied mission is to supplement airbase facilities and services at a collocated Marine Corps Air Station, which is performed aboard MCAS Futenma.

History

Marine Wing Support Squadron 172 was activated at Marine Corps Air Station Futenma on 16 June 1986. After MWSS-174 was disbanded, MWSS-172 became the sole support squadron on Okinawa. The Squadron continually grew adding enhanced motor transport and engineer capabilities. Originally located on Ie Shima, the Squadron made numerous improvement while stationed there. To include: construction of a control tower, a state-of-the-art Close-in Approach Indicator guidance system, and a Vertical Short Take-off and Landing (VSTOL) facility. This VSTOL facility is the only one of its kind in the Western Pacific. Since the facility’s beginnings on Ie Shima, MWSS-172 has been responsible for maintenance and serviceability of the VSTOL strip, to include the complete replacement of 432,648 square feet (40,194.3 m²) of AM-2 matting, as well as the coral resurfacing of the entire runway on Ie Shima. MWSS-172 deployed to Camp Al Asad from March 2008 to October 2008 in support of OIF.

In 2001 MWSS-172 relocated to Camp Foster and continues to support MCAS Futenma and Marine Aircraft Group 36 (MAG-36). MWSS-172 has assisted and supported many real world operations to include: Operation Desert Storm, Operation Sea Angel, Operation Restore Hope, Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom.

See also

United States Marine Corps portal

• United States Marine Corps Aviation
• Organization of the United States Marine Corps
• List of United States Marine Corps aviation support units

External links

• MWSS 172's official website