shawn118aw
Posts: 39
Joined: 1/3/2005 Status: offline
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I can answer some of your questions by reference to several USMC and USN books and reports to the CNO I have collected for the past 35 years of studying the Pacific War, one being the History of VMF-214 (not written by Boyington). From Jul 42 to Mar 45: Squadron Size for single seat aircraft at that time was: 249 total personnel of which 220 were ground troops and 29 Pilots for 24 aircraft (one for one pilot to aircraft, +5...One Commander, One XO, One Flying Engineering Officer, One Supply Officer, and One Intel Officer) In June 1944, the Marine Corp established the manning requirements of 150% of pilots to assigned aircraft thru the end of the war. More data on VMF-214, In 32 months they had 70 aircraft assigned, 18 shot down or lost to enemy action, 52 lost due to accidents. VMF-214 had 4 Combat Tours of 6 weeks each (between Apr 43 and Feb 44) then rotated to rear area and to US for retraining to Carrier Qualification. By Jan 1945, the squadron was assinged to the USS Franklin and assinged 18 aircarft and 27 Pilots and departed the San Fran, CA. VMF-214 was still assigned to the USS Franklin when it was hit by a Kamikaze in Mar 45 and lost 7 Aircraft and returned to the US to become a training squadron until the end of the war. They had 132 Pilots assigned to them in 32 Months, of which 27 were KIA or Missing in Action or POW. So that means for a 29 Pilot Squadron, each pilot would served an average of 7-8 months of combat duty, or 3 combat tours of 6 weeks each. All Squadon Commanders were limited to 2 Combat tours and then sent home to the US to train new pilots. Aircraft Assigned to VMF-214: Aug 42 to Dec 42: F4F3-3 Jan 43 to Jul 43: F4F-4 Jul 43 to Mar 45: F4U-1, F4U-1A, FG-1A, F4U-1D So what can be taken from this? 1. For each squadron assign 120% Pilots to each aircraft until Jun 44 then 150% (Pilots to aircraft) 2. Each VMF-squadron assigned 24 aircraft (Ground based, 18 for Carrier based Squadrons) 3. If you never rotate squadrons back for R & R, then you only need half (50%) of the squadrons listed. 4. As for the pilot pool, reduce the 1,501 Pilots KIA'd and Missing during the war by 1/2 (to 750 as replacements) and distribute that number over the 45 months with the peek in Sept 1944. Is this the kind of details you need for every Squadron? Marine Corp Air Ops is not really my area, I am more into Logistic--both US and Japanese. But what ever I can do to make the game accurate and the best it can be I will do. Shawn
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