On 21 October 1944 the Marine Corps stood up a new unit titled the "Provisional Air Support Command" (PASC) at Marine Corps Air Station Ewa, Hawaii under the command of Colonel Vernon E. Megee. This new unit was tasked with allowing the landing force commander to exercise full control of supporting aircraft during amphibious operations. The PASC was composed of a headquarters element and four Landing Force Air Support Control Units (LFASCU) with leadership being provided by some of the best and brightest Marine Aviators as they rotated back to the Pacific from supporting establishment billets. The LFASCUs were 87 man units commanded by a colonel. By the end of November 1944 the personnel and equipment for LFASCU-1 were appropriately formed and they commenced training in air support problems at MCAS Ewa. PASC leadership also experimented with radar controlled bombing in December 1944 when they coordinated to use an SCR-584 radar from the 8th Antiaircraft Artillery Battalion on Kauai to direct simulated bombing missions with SB2C and SBD dive bombers. Early results from these tests were positive. By early January 1945, LFASCU-1 reported to the V Amphibious Corps in preparation for the assault on Iwo Jima. LFASCU #1 departed Hawaii on 1 February 1945 whilst LFASCUs 2-4 remained in the vicinity of MCAS Ewa training for future operations.