Officially Licensed USMC VMM-266 Fighting Griffins Patch — From Desert Storm to the Osprey Age
The Griffins have been fighting since '83 and they haven't taken a day off yet.
HMM-266 was activated on April 26, 1983, at MCAS New River, North Carolina, and immediately established itself as 2nd MAW's cold weather assault support experts — training across fourteen exercises from the High Sierras to the arctic conditions of northern Norway. On December 31, 1990, the Fighting Griffins became the first CH-46E squadron from II MEF to deploy to Southwest Asia, arriving in Jubail, Saudi Arabia for Desert Storm. They made worldwide news in 1992 providing heavy-lift support during the eruption of Mount Etna, then deployed to Somalia, Haiti, the Adriatic, and Albania before transitioning to the MV-22 Osprey in 2007 as the third operational Osprey unit in the Marine Corps. Now flying out of New River under MAG-26, the Griffins continue to deploy globally — from Iraq to Africa to Spain.
Perfect For: VMM-266 and HMM-266 Marines, Osprey and Phrog aircrew, MAG-26 personnel, and anyone who's been cold, tired, and still flying the mission.
Cold weather experts. Combat veterans. The Fighting Griffins don't stop.
