VMAT-102 Desert Rats

VMAT-102 "Skyhawks" / "Desert Rats" · USMC · 1970s

Marine Attack Training Squadron 102 was established on 3 January 1969 at MCAS Yuma, Arizona, formed from the merger of VMT-102 and VMA-103, and spent its entire life turning freshly winged second lieutenants into A-4 Skyhawk attack pilots. Flying A-4C/E/F/M single-seaters alongside TA-4F and TA-4J trainers under the tail code SC and the callsign "Sierra Charlie," the squadron drilled close air support over the saguaro and gunnery targets of the Arizona desert — the setting the squadron's alternate name and this patch's cigar-chewing rat in a flight suit, standing squarely on a bombing bullseye. Officially the Skyhawks, the squadron was known just as widely by the desert nickname worn here through the 1970s. VMAT-102 was deactivated on 1 October 1987 as the Marine Corps retired the Skyhawk from the training role.