After 23 years, Marines get last Super Stallion CH-53E helicopter

(EXCERPT), by Holly Hickman ASSOCIATED PRESS

7:19 p.m. November 24, 2003

NEW RIVER MARINE CORPS AIR STATION, N.C. – The CH-53 helicopter is
built for heavy loads – carrying the weight of four decades, three
wars and dozens of humanitarian missions. But the strain has started
to show.

On Monday, the last Super Stallion helicopter arrived at Marine Heavy
Helicopter Squadron 461 – marking nearly 23 years since the first
CH-53E was delivered to the Marine Corps unit.

"This is it," said spokesman John Milliman of the Marine Corps
Helicopter Programs. "This is the last of the Mohicans parked right
here."

Marine officials say the $39 million model is being phased out because
it requires extensive maintenance. They've vowed that its successor –
which hasn't been publicly identified – will require mu...

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---------------------------
Otis Willie
Associate Librarian
The American War Library
http://www.americanwarlibrary.com