Expeditionary· World War I
Azores anti-submarine patrol
The Azores are a group of Portuguese islands in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.
They sat along the shipping routes between America and Europe, which made them important for protecting Allied convoys from German submarines. The Marine Corps sent its 1st Marine Aeronautic Company there, a unit that flew seaplanes. It became the first fully trained and equipped American aviation unit to deploy overseas in the war. The Marines flew anti-submarine patrols over the surrounding waters, watching for U-boats and helping guard the ships passing through. They flew dozens of patrol missions during their time on the islands, though they never actually spotted an enemy submarine. This was a defensive patrol mission far from the fighting in France, focused on guarding a key Atlantic crossroads. It also marked an early milestone for Marine aviation as the first to serve overseas.
Podcast episodes on World War I
Record no. 545