3rd Marine Aircraft Wing strengthens as WTI concludes

Upon completion of Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course 1-21, more than 100 newly qualified instructors will return to their respective squadrons throughout the Marine Corps.

Culminating in a fully integrated, combined arms exercise encompassing all functions of Marine aviation, WTI prepares graduates to support the Marine Air-Ground Task Force with mission planning, briefing and debriefing, threat systems, and unit weapons system employment.

Maj. Gen. Christopher Mahoney, 3rd Marine Air Wing ( MAW) Commanding General, said the WTI course is not just critical for the readiness of the 3rd MAW, but to all of Marine Corps aviation.

“My pilots, crews and maintainers get tremendous opportunities to execute against some very varsity level problem sets,” Maj. Gen. Mahoney said.

“Make no mistake about it, our lethality across aviation combat functions – from command and control to aviation ground support logistics, and everything in between – is sharpened during WTI.”

During WTI 1-21, which is currently underway at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, the 1st, 2nd and 3rd MAWS provided aircraft such as the F-35C Lightning II, AH-1Z Viper, UH-1Y Venom, and CH-53E Super Stallion the opportunity to assist in the ability to conduct all of the functions of Marine aviation.

“The weapons we carry forward are forged at Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 (MAWTS-1),” Maj. Gen. Mahoney said. “All of these capabilities are essential to maintaining 3rd MAW readiness, and will ultimately help prepare our Marines to effectively move forward and confront challenges across the globe.”

Additionally, 3rd Battalion, 6th Marine Regiment arrived from Camp Lejeune to conduct pre-deployment training in conjunction with the aviators.

The WTI instructor course is a seven-week period of instruction, hosted by MAWTS-1 at MCAS Yuma, that incorporates Marine Corps planning and implementation of advanced air and ground tactics though a series of escalating evolutions in order to produce certified weapons and tactics instructors.

The mission of MAWTS-1 is to provide standardized advanced tactical training and certification of unit instructor qualifications that support Marine aviation training and readiness, and to provide assistance in the development and employment of aviation weapons and tactics.

3rd MAW continues to “Fix, Fly and Fight” as the Marine Corps’ largest aircraft wing, and remains combat-ready, deployable on short notice, and lethal when called into action.

U.S. MARINE CORPS PHOTO BY SGT. ALEXANDER N. STURDIVANT U.S. MARINE CORPS AH-1Z VIPER PILOTS, Capt. Brendan O’Donnell, right, assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Training Squadron 303, Marine Aircraft Group 39, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, and Capt. Gavin Wezinsky, left, assigned to Marine Light Attack Helicopter Training Squadron 167, Marine Aircraft Group 29, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing, land at a forward arming and refueling point at Stoval Airfield, Dateland, Arizona, Oct. 16, 2020.

U.S. MARINE CORPS PHOTO BY SGT. DOMINIC ROMERO U.S. MARINES WITH MARINE FIGHTER ATTACK Squadron 314, Marine Aircraft Group 11, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, gain the capability of conducting a hot-load of ordnance on an F-35C Lightning II, while being validated at south combat aircraft loading area, during the WTI course 1-21, at Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, Arizona, Oct. 6, 2020.

U.S. MARINE CORPS PHOTO BY SGT. DOMINIC ROMERO U.S. MARINE CORPS STAFF SGT. BRANDON MOTE, a crew chief with Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 466, Marine Aviation Group 16, 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, participates in the Weapons and Tactics Instructor (WTI) course 1-21, while firing an M2 .50-caliber machine gun from a CH-53E Super Stallion in Yuma, Arizona, Oct. 3, 2020.

U.S. MARINE CORPS PHOTO BY SGT. ALEXANDER N. STURDIVANT) U.S. MARINE CORPS AH-1Z VIPERS, ASSIGNED TO MARINE AVIATION WEAPONS and Tactics Squadron One (MAWTS-1), fly to a forward arming and refueling point during WTI course 1-21, at Stoval Airfield, Dateland, Arizona, Oct. 16, 2020.