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Old 09-19-2018, 08:44 AM
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Don Boose Don Boose is offline
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Glen -

I don't have a definitive answer, but I have a Marine Air order of battle for 31 August 1943 (the month that Boyington took command of VMF-214 in the Russell Islands).

At that time, VMF-214 was part of Marine Air Group Twenty-One, which had one J2F-5 and one J2F-2 assigned. No J2F-4, although one or more could have been assigned later in the war.

I could find only one J2F-4 assigned to the Marines on 31 August 1943, and it was assigned to the Base Air Detachment, Marine Corps Air Station, Quantico, Virginia.

However, in the 1943 section of his book on USMC aircraft, Larkins has an image of a J2F-4 with a caption stating that "Eight versions of the 'Duck' were flown by the Marines. Its most valuable wartime use was rescuing downed pilots during combat."

I am sure that you are correct that the Ducks assigned to the Marine units also were used for utility duties: transport of personnel, mail, and small cargo; liaison; and to maintain flight time.

Source:
William T. Larkins, "Status of Marine Corps Aircraft, 1 August 1943," U.S. Marine Corps Aircraft 1914-1959, Concord, CA: Aviation History Publications, 1959, pp. 105-108, 111.

Don
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Grumman J2F4 1/33 "scratch"-grumman_j2f-4_larkins_usmc-p111.jpg  
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