‘Sweathogs’ construct new helo pad for isolated outpost
A convoy with Marine Wing Support Squadron 273 pauses in the desert of southwest Afghanistan May 4. MWSS-273 Marines and sailors traveled to southwestern Afghanistan to build a safe helicopter landing zone for the personnel of Echo Company, 2nd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment.
‘Vengeance’ takes flight, lifts off for first deployment
Marines greet the last Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 369 flight section on the flight line aboard Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, May 15. HMLA-469 assumed control of combat operations in a midnight transfer of authority ceremony, marking the end of HMLA-369 “Gunfighter” combat in Afghanistan.
‘Vengeance’ takes flight, lifts off for first deployment
Lance Cpl. Dean Ray, a Marine Light Attack Helicopter Squadron 469 crew chief and Stockton, Calif., native, prepares a .50-caliber machine gun mounted on a UH-1Y Huey before a flight aboard Camp Bastion, Afghanistan, May 18. This is the first deployment for Ray and the squadron.
From couch to combat
Sgt. Enrique Zamora, a crew chief from Los Fresnos, Texas, with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466, struggles to see through a thick dust storm over southwestern Afghanistan May 17. The squadron supported vehicle interdiction operations with members of the Afghan National Army’s military police and Regimental Combat Team 5.
From couch to combat
A Marine with Regimental Combat Team 5 and his military working dog keep an eye on the horizon in southwestern Afghanistan May 17. Marines with RCT-5, as well as members of the Afghan National Army’s military police, flew with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466 to perform vehicle interdictions along known drug trafficking routes.
From couch to combat
An Afghan woman and her child.
Marines get ‘hot hookup,’ pioneer new technique
Marines with Combat Logistics Battalion 5 wait to approach a cargo hookup site in Helmand province, Afghanistan, May 22. Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 2 made history with the landing support team Marines and the Kaman K1200, “K-MAX,” unmanned helicopter by performing the first unmanned, mid-flight cargo hookups.
Marines get ‘hot hookup,’ pioneer new technique
Marines with Combat Logistics Battalion 5 return from familiarizing themselves with the downward thrust of a Kaman K1200, or “K-MAX,” unmanned helicopter during initial testing in Helmand province, Afghanistan, May 22. Marine Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Squadron 2 pioneered the first unmanned, mid-flight external cargo hookups, and delivered approximately 6,000 pounds of gear in their first day of testing.
Whirly Bird
Ospreys fly high over San Diego.
Hellhole
A Recon Marine prepares to slide out of the "hellhole" of a CH-53E Super Stallion hovering approximately 80 feet from the ground.
Lisa Tourtelot 