World War II VMF-123 was commissioned on 7 September 1942 at
Camp Kearney. The squadron took delivery of 18
Grumman F4F Wildcats in December of that year. A large percentage of the squadron’s initial pilots came from the experienced
VMF-121 hoping it would require them less time to become combat ready. The squadron embarked upon the and departed the United States on 8 January 1943. They arrived at
Noumea on 22 January, where they transferred to the . Arriving at
Efate on 26 January, they eventually boarded
DC-3s flying for
Espiritu Santo on 2 February. The squadron arrived at
Henderson Field on
Guadalcanal on 3 February 1943 and flew their first combat mission the following day. Because they were the last of the Marine fighter squadrons to arrive in the
Solomon Islands, VMF-123 was the last of these eight squadrons to transition from the
Grumman F4F Wildcat to the
Vought F4U Corsair. In August 1943, the squadron moved to the new field at
Munda in the Central Solomon Islands and flew their first mission from there on 14 August 1943. Their arrival on Munda coincided with the
landings on Vella Lavella which were constantly under attack from
Japanese aircraft based on
Bougainville. VMF-123 was one of many squadrons that fought Japanese aircraft for control of the skies over Vella Lavella. The squadron was split up in September 1943 with half remaining on Munda and the other half moving to a field in the
Russell Islands. Their last mission in the
South Pacific was flown in November 1943 and the squadron returned to the United States on 14 December 1943. VMF-123 spent the majority of 1944 resting and refitting. On 31 December 1944, the squadron, along with
VMF-112 boarded the for their third combat tour. During this cruise, which last until 16 June 1945, they participated in the
Battle of Iwo Jima, took part in the first carrier strikes against
Tokyo since the
Doolittle Raid in 1942, and participated in the entire
Okinawa Campaign. During their cruise on the USS
Bennington, the squadron had seven pilots killed in action and five permanently listed as missing in action. Upon their return to the U.S., the squadron was based out of
Marine Corps Air Station El Centro where they were teamed with
VMTB-623 as they trained for the upcoming
invasion of Japan. They were scheduled to deploy on board the when the war ended. The squadron was deactivated shortly thereafter on 10 September 1945.
Reserve years In the late 1940s, the squadron was again reactivated as part of the
Marine Forces Reserve and were based out of
Naval Air Station Los Alamitos. Shortly after the outbreak of the
Korean War, the squadron was called to active duty on 23 July 1950, however they did not deploy to combat. Instead, they served as a training squadron for replacement Corsair pilots on their way to the war. Following the war, they transitioned to jet aircraft and were later decommissioned on 31 October 1965. ==See also==