Activated on Jan 15, 1951 as Marine Helicopter Transport Squadron 161 (HMR-161)
Redesignated on Dec 31, 1956 as Marine Helicopter Transport Squadron (Light) 161 (HMR(L)-161)
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The squadron was activated on January 15, 1951 at Marine Corps Air Station El Toro, California, as Marine Helicopter Transport Squadron 161 (HMR-161) Air Fleet Marine Force Pacific, the squadron moved a month later to Marine Corps Air Facility, Santa Ana, California to train on their new helicopter, the Sikorsky HRS-1. Except for the commanding officer, LtCol George Herring, most pilots in the squadron had flown fighters during World War II.[2] In August 1951 the squadron deployed to Korea and attached to the 1st Marine Aircraft Wing (1 MAW), where it operated in the central and the western fronts.
HRS-1s of HMR-161 flying from USS Sicily in September 1952. After becoming the first helicopter squadron to deploy troops into combat, HMR-161 successfully flew from the USS Sicily (CVE-118) to test new concept of combining vertical envelopment with amphibious assault during Operation "Marlex-5" off the coast of Inchon on September 1, 1952. While not the first ever ship to shore helicopter flight with Marines aboard, that having been done by HMR-162 during Operation Lex Baker off the coast of Southern California in February, 1952, it was the first on foreign shores. During the course of the Korean War, HMR-161 flew 16,538 hours during 18,607 sorties eventually accounting for over 60,000 troop movements and moving 7.5 million pounds of cargo. The Greyhawks then participated in the defense of the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) from July 1953 to March 1955. The Squadron then relocated that month to Marine Corps Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, and attached to Marine Aircraft Group 13 (MAG 13).
