VMAT-102 Skyhawks

VMAT-102 "Skyhawks" · USMC · 1969-1987

Marine Attack Training Squadron 102 stood up on 3 January 1969 from the merger of VMT-102 and VMA-103, and for nearly two decades at MCAS Yuma it was the Marine Corps' schoolhouse for the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. Flying A-4C, E, F, M and TA-4F/J airframes under the "SC" tail code that gave the squadron its "Sierra Charlie" call sign, its instructors took freshly winged second lieutenants and turned them into close air support pilots for the Fleet Marine Force. The squadron never deployed to combat, but the attack aviators it produced flew from Vietnam-era decks to Yuma's ranges and beyond. VMAT-102 was disestablished on 1 October 1987 as the Skyhawk gave way to the Harrier and Hornet.