, in late 1943 The first cohort of Marine paratroopers trained at
NAS Lakehurst in
New Jersey in October 1940, eventually becoming the 1st Marine Parachute Battalion. They were followed by a second group in December 1940, forming the 2nd Marine Parachute Battalion. A third class trained at
Camp Kearny in
San Diego, California in early 1941, eventually forming the 3rd Marine Parachute Battalion. After the
United States entered
World War II, the training program was stepped up, and a special training camp and parachute training school was opened temporarily at
Camp Elliott in San Diego in May 1942, next to Camp Kearny, moving to purpose-built accommodation nearby at
Camp Gillespie in September 1942. A second training camp and parachute training school opened at
Hadnot Point on the
New River in
North Carolina in June 1942, but closed in July 1943. The Marine parachute battalion was organized into three rifle companies and a headquarters company consisting of the headquarters elements and a demolition platoon. Each rifle company consisted of three rifle platoons with each platoon equipped with rifles, light machine guns, and a 60mm mortar. The
1st Parachute Battalion was attached to the
1st Marine Division for the
invasion of
Guadalcanal. The unit departed
Norfolk, Virginia on 10 June 1942 aboard the stores ship arriving at
Wellington, New Zealand 11 July 1942. On 7 August 1942 the unit conducted an
amphibious assault on the small island of
Gavutu and later seized the neighboring island of
Tanambogo along with other Marine units. The battalion later moved to Guadalcanal, fighting alongside the 1st
Marine Raiders in the Tasimboko raid and the
Battle of Edson's Ridge. The high casualties suffered by the Marine paratroopers led the battalion to be withdrawn to Camp Kiser in
Tontouta,
New Caledonia in September. Prior to the
main landing on
Bougainville, where both the
1st and
3rd Parachute Battalions would eventually see action, the
2nd Parachute Battalion performed
a diversionary raid on
Choiseul Island, from October 27 - November 4, 1943. The three parachute battalions, with approximately 3,000 members, had become the 1st Marine Parachute Regiment of the
I Marine Amphibious Corps. Four parachute operations were planned but never executed: • Capturing Villa airfield on
Kolombangara as part of
Operation Cartwheel to support the
New Georgia campaign in July 1943 • Capturing the
Kahili and Kara airfields on
Bougainville in September 1943 • Capturing
Kavieng in
New Britain in April 1944 • Capturing a Japanese
seaplane base at
Rekata Bay,
Santa Isabel Island (but the Japanese evacuated the base in September 1943) However, the need for and cost of a parachute corps in the Marines was questioned, as were other specialized elite units, such as the
Marine Raiders. The Marine Corps also lacked the
transport aircraft required for a massed parachute drop. On 30 December 1943,
Marine Commandant Thomas Holcomb ordered the 1st Marine Parachute Regiment to be disbanded, and along with the Marine Raider units, it officially ceased to exist on 29 February 1944. Apart from a small group including
Peter Julien Ortiz who were parachuted into
France as part of an
Office of Strategic Services team to support the
French Resistance, the Paramarines never dropped by parachute into combat, but were utilized during beach
raids in the
Pacific campaign, including at
Guadalcanal. Paramarines at San Diego were transferred to the
5th Marine Division which landed on
Iwo Jima on February 19, 1945. Former Paramarines, Cpl.
Harlon H. Block and Pfc.
Ira H. Hayes, assisted in the
raising of the American flag on
Mount Suribachi on 23 February 1945, depicted in
Joe Rosenthal's iconic photograph. A third former Paramarine, Sgt.
Henry O. "Hank" Hansen, had participated in the first American flag-raising earlier that day. Four of the 82 Marine
Medal of Honor recipients in
World War II were former Paramarines who were awarded the medal for their heroic actions on Iwo Jima. ==Modern day==