page_title: United States Marine Corps Aviation
section_title: World War I
hierarchical_section_title: United States Marine Corps Aviation / History / World War I
context_page_description: United States Marine Corps Aviation is the aircraft arm of the United States Marine Corps. Marine Corps aviation units have a very different mission and operation than their ground counterparts, and thus have their own history, traditions, terms, and procedures.
  Aviation units within the Marine Corps are assigned to support the Marine Air-Ground Task Force, as the aviation combat element, by providing six functions: assault support, antiair warfare, offensive air support, electronic warfare, control of aircraft and missiles, and aerial reconnaissance. The Corps operates both rotary-wing and fixed-wing aircraft mainly to provide transport and close air support to its ground forces. However, other aircraft types are also used in a variety of support and special-purpose roles.
  All Marine Corps aviation falls under the influence of the Deputy Commandant for Aviation, whose job is to advise the Commandant of the Marine Corps in all matters relating to aviation, especially acquisition of new assets, conversions of current aircraft, maintenance, operation, and command.
context_section_description: The first major expansion of the Marine Corps' air component came with America's entrance into World War I in 1917. Wartime expansion saw the Aviation Company split into the First Aeronautic Company which deployed to the Azores to hunt U-boats in January 1918 and the First Marine Air Squadron which deployed to France as the newly renamed 1st Marine Aviation Force in July 1918 and provided bomber and fighter support to the Navy's Day Wing, Northern Bombing Group. By the end of the war, several Marine Aviators had recorded air-to-air kills, collectively they had dropped over fourteen tons of bombs. and their number totals included 282 officers and 2,180 enlisted men operating from 8 squadrons, with Second Lieutenant Ralph Talbot being the first-ever Marine Corps aviator to earn the Medal of Honor, for action against the Luftstreitkräfte air arm of Imperial Germany on October 8, 1918. In 1919 the 1st Division/Squadron 1 was formed from these units, and still exists today as VMA-231
caption: Roundel used by the Marine Corps during World War I