Compass Points - Amazing CH53K
Marine helo is upgraded
August 23, 2025
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From its inception, the Marine Corps has been continually upgrading and enhancing its units, equipment, and capabilities. That is particularly true for helicopters. For decades Marines have taken the lead in using helicopters for a variety of military missions.
Some of the first combat helo missions were flown in the early days of the Korean War by Marine helo pilot, Big John LaVoy.
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Seasoned WWII fighter pilot Colonel John “Big John” LaVoy was selected to be one of the first Marine Corps pilots to be trained to fly these aircraft. A captain at the time, LaVoy joined the inaugural class of helicopter pilots in Pensacola, Fla. in 1944. All of the candidates were accomplished fixed-wing pilots. However, as they soon found out, helicopter flying was completely different than anything they had experienced before.
LaVoy and his fellow freshly-minted marine helicopter pilots joined Marine Observation Squadron 6 (VMO-6) shortly after North Korean forces invaded South Korea on June 25, 1950. The crew set off for East Asia. This squadron was the first one from the USMC to have helicopters attached to it. They were originally deployed on the escort carrier Badoeng Strait with four Sikorsky HO3S-1’s in tow.
-- Military Machine
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Marines began with a Sikorsky helo, and after 75 years Marines are still flying Sikorsky helos, now the Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion, Sikorsky S-95, a heavy transport helicopter capable of a wide range of military missions.
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The CH-53K King Stallion could represent a significant enhancement in Marine Corps heavy-lift capabilities, but its true potential will only be realized if users embrace transformational thinking rather than viewing it as merely an upgraded CH-53E, according to a top NAVAIR official.
. . . The CH-53K’s larger engines, advanced avionics, and greater payload capacity don’t just improve existing capabilities. They enable entirely new operational concepts. Where the CH-53E required extensive preparation and carried significant risk when lifting 20,000-pound loads, the CH-53K
handles such operations routinely, fundamentally changing how ground commanders plan missions.
The Service Level Training Exercise (SLTE) at 29 Palms, California in January 2025 provided the kind of crucial operational experience that is needed to overcome old mindsets. HMH-461 deployed six CH-53K aircraft in a comprehensive test of both machine and Marine capabilities.
The exercise wasn’t simply about demonstrating lift capacity — it explored what becomes possible when
technological limitations disappear. The most striking demonstration was a full company insert conducted entirely with CH-53K aircraft, dramatically reducing both operational signature and timing required for major troop movements. This capability delivers critical advantages in contested environments where speed and fewer lift elements determine mission success.
Key exercise outcomes included testing increased lift and range in contested logistics scenarios, enabling Marines to develop new tactics and procedures, and demonstrating that building confidence in the platform requires human adaptation alongside machine performance.
Perhaps the most significant advancement lies in the CH-53K’s integrated mission planning ecosystem. This system encompasses both cockpit technologies and ground-based planning stations, creating seamless integration throughout the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF).
.. Breaking Defense
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After 75 years, Marine helos are still a vital part of Marine aviation capabilities. Now, the CH53K is setting new standards in high performance helo ops -- see video link below of CH53K, "Insane Training."
From its inception, the Marine Corps has been continually upgrading and enhancing its units, equipment, and capabilities. Particularly when upgrading new equipment and technology, the Marine Corps has normally been very careful to maintain older, still functioning equipment, until the newer version actually is fielded. The dangerous Force Design divestments have been a regrettable exception to consistent Marine Corps practice. Fortunately, with the latest upgrade to the CH53 heavy lift helicopter, the Marine Corps is continuing to use the older CH53E until the upgraded CH53K is fully fielded. The CH53K looks to be another successful example of the long history of Marine Corps innovation. When the Marine Corps starts with thorough and professional combat development, the result is better warfighting capabilities for Marines. Compass Points salutes all those who have worked so hard and so successfully to develop, field, maintain, and fly Marine helos, including the CH53K.
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Military Machine - 02/28/2020
Flying Blind: The Early Days Of Rotary-Wing Aviation In The Marine Corps
By Reece Daniel, US Marine
https://militarymachine.com/marine-helicopter/
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Breaking Defense - 08/21/2025
How The CH-53K King Stallion Can Transform Marine Heavy-Lift Operations
The CH-53K King Stallion is more than just upgraded CH-53E
By Robbin Laird
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Youtube
US Marine CH53K Video "Insane Training"
www.youtube.com/watch?v=o1AEBDraiqI
Amazing Marine Fighting Systems do not appear instantaneously. Grok:”Lt. Gen. Frederick L. "Dick" McCorkle, known by his call sign "Assassin," served as the first Deputy Commandant for Aviation (DCA) for the U.S. Marine Corps from June 1998 to August 2001. His tenure coincided with the initial conceptualization of what would eventually become the CH-53K King Stallion program, making it a key period to explore.
During McCorkle's leadership, the Marine Corps was assessing the long-term viability of its heavy-lift helicopter fleet, particularly the CH-53E Super Stallion, which was entering service in the late 1980s but showing signs of structural fatigue and limited payload capacity for future missions. In 1997, prior to his appointment as DCA, the Marine Corps issued a Request for Information (RFI) to industry to explore options for upgrading or replacing the CH-53E. McCorkle, with his extensive aviation background—having flown over 100 combat missions in Vietnam and commanded Marine Aircraft Group 29—took office in 1998 and likely played a pivotal role in shaping this effort.
Under his tenure, the 1999 Marine Corps Aviation Plan, a strategic document overseen by the DCA, highlighted the need for a next-generation heavy-lift helicopter to meet evolving operational demands, such as supporting expeditionary forces with greater range and payload. This plan laid the groundwork for the CH-53K program, initially conceived as an upgrade to the CH-53E (the S-80 concept by Sikorsky). McCorkle’s leadership would have involved coordinating with Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and advocating for funding, though specific directives tying him directly to the CH-53K’s initiation are not publicly detailed. His focus on modernization and his influence on aviation strategy during this period suggest he was instrumental in initiating the conceptual phase, with formal development accelerating after his tenure under subsequent DCAs.
No single document names McCorkle as the sole initiator, but his position and timing align with the program’s early stages, starting with the 1997 RFI and the 1999 Aviation Plan.”! It took 28 years for this Magnificent Marine Aviation Combat System to arrive. Berger and Smith DESTROYED THE MEF CENTRIC MAGTF, and its MIGHTY AGILE, SCALEABLE, LOGISTICALLY SUPPORTABLE EAGLE GLOBE AND ANCHOR, MARINE FIGHTING MACHINE IN LESS THAN 6 YEARS. HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE TO RECOVER? Our Marine Corps is NOT HUMPTY DUMPTY…..WE CAN RECOVER….KEEP UP THE FIRE!
Is this aircraft worth $135M each? For a cargo helicopter? Could an upgraded CH-47 have a better capability:money ratio? Or is this another cluster like buying new H-1s instead of H-60s? Would the Corps have been better with less money towards that capability and more in other areas? The ACE has ate our budget and is becoming less and less relevant in certain areas.