Gen. Vandegrift at USMC Night Fighter radar tests

[Bob Hudson]

Picked this up today at an estate sale at the home of the late Col. James B. Maguire Jr, USMC, Ret.

 

He served with VMF 112 in the Guadalcanal campaign, saw action at Guam and Okinawa, was Commanding Officer of Marine Night Fighter Squadron 544 in 1944 when this photo was taken and was CO of Night Fighter Squadron VMF(N) 534 in May and June 1945. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal.

 

In this official USMC photo taken 11 December 1944, Commandant of the Marine Corps Alexander Vandegrift is visiting Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Caroline for something related to "Night Radar." I cannot make out the word after "radar."

 

Col. - then Major - Maguire - is the head between Vandegrift and the civilian (who I was told may have been a Cabinet member). The guy shaking the civilian's hand looks like he could be R. Bruce Porter, an ace who was Executive Officer of VMF(N) 544 when this photo was taken. The squadron had actually moved from Cherry Point to the West Coast by the time this photo was taken, so this must have been some sort of big deal to get the CO and other squadron members, to say nothing of the CMC, back to Cherry Point.

 

[Jim Baker]

It looks like night radar hop, which would make sense.

[Bob Hudson]

It looks like night radar hop, which would make sense.

 

That sounds like it would work. They must have been demonstrating some innovation to get the VIP's out at night perhaps the use of the AN/APS-15 radar in Marine Corps aircraft.

 

There's a long history of USMC Night Fighter squadrons at http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/lib...ort/1989/MB.htm