Sgt. David Ferrara
U.S. Marine Corps
Helicopter Mechanic
HML-771 & HMLA-169
June ’75–January ’89
U.S. Marine Corps
Helicopter Mechanic
HML-771 & HMLA-169
June ’75–January ’89
David Ferrara’s life has been shaped by hardship, service, faith, and perseverance. Born in Norwood, Massachusetts, in November 1957, he grew up in East Walpole and faced difficulties early. He was only five and a half years old when he was sent to first grade and he struggled from the start. He recalled, “I started my first day in the coatroom, and when the teacher came in to get me, I ran home. I stayed back in first grade.”
In 1970, his mother died during childbirth, and the baby also died. Three years later, tragedy struck again when his younger sister Christine was hit by a car and died on the anniversary of their mother’s death. David’s father later remarried, and the family grew by one more sibling. His stepmother was from South Carolina. “She tried to feed us grits and found out quickly that we liked pasta,” he remembered with humor. Ironically, David now lives in South Carolina, though he still does not care much for grits.
David recalled prejudice against Italians in his neighborhood during his childhood in the 1960s. “There were a lot of people who didn’t like Italians, and they didn’t like me,” he recalled. Fistfights were common, including with one boy he argued with almost daily. David won most of the fights, except against his nemesis.
Faith was central in David’s home, but after losing his mother and sister, he wanted little to do with God and rebelled against school and authority. “I never finished 10th grade,” he said. After being expelled, he looked for a different path and the Marine Corps Reserves offered that path. David chose the Marines partly because “I liked John Wayne and the movie Iwo Jima.”
David attended boot camp at Parris Island against the backdrop of the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War in April of 1975 and the capture of the S.S. Mayaguez the following month. The Mayaguez was a U.S. commercial vessel that was captured by the Khmer Rouge of Cambodia. The incident was resolved over a three-day period with a U.S. rescue of the crew that resulted in 41 American Marines dead.
Boot camp was hard. David’s stubbornness helped him endure it. He recalled constant pressure from the drill instructors and said, “Every single day I was there, I got hit by the drill instructors at least once.” He can laugh about itnow, though it was not funny then.
After graduating from Parris Island in June 1975, he attended Advanced Individual Training in helicopter maintenance in Millington, Tennessee, and later in California. David learned the technical skills that would shape much of his service. After completing his training, he served with HML-771 at NAS South Weymouth, Massachusetts, fulfilling reserve duties for the next six years.
During those years, he worked in dry cleaning, carpet installation, and as a baker’s helper. By early 1981, he needed a change and requested the Marine Corps to move him to active duty. They agreed on the condition that he complete a GED course, which he did. David was assigned to Attack Helicopter Squadron HMA-169 as a flightline mechanic at Camp Pendleton Auxiliary Airfield, which later became a full Marine Corps Air Station. HMA-169 eventually transitioned into a composite squadron, HMLA-169.
In 1983, David deployed on WestPac ’83 aboard the USS New Orleans. Much of his work involved corrosion control, a constant battle against saltwater damage. “It’s amazing how fast corrosion happens,” he said. “It ends up in places you would never think possible!”
WestPac included naval exercises across the western Pacific to sharpen readiness and strengthen coordination withallied forces. “It was a big show of force,” David recalled. The deployment included Operation Team Spirit with South Korean Marines and took him to the Philippines, Australia, Hong Kong, and Japan.
David’s next major overseas deployment was aboard the USS Okinawa. The Iran-Iraq War which began in 1980, had expanded into the Tanker War, with Iran and Iraq attacking commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz. Each side was trying to deprive the other of oil revenue needed to finance the war. After having its ships attacked by the Iranians, Kuwait requested U.S. protection for its tankers. The Navy launched Operation Earnest Will, which reflagged Kuwaiti vessels as American and escorted them through the contested waterway.
The Iranians had been placed mines in the Strait of Hormuz which created imminent danger for any vessels in the area. One of the first ships escorted by the Navy struck one of the mines. There were no minesweepers available in the Persian Gulf and U.S. helicopters equipped with minesweeping gear became essential to keeping shipping lanes open.
In October 1987, the USS Okinawa departed San Diego for the Persian Gulf in support of Operations Earnest Will and Prime Chance. Its mission was airborne mine countermeasures as part of MAGTAF-87, a Marine Air-Ground Task Force combining aviation and ground personnel. David recalled that the squadron had less than four days’ notice to pack the entire squadron before the ship departed.
The Okinawa left San Diego with serious propulsion problems and completed much of the deployment on one engine. Still, the ship crossed the Pacific and reached the Persian Gulf on his 30th birthday. There, it cross-decked with the Guadalcanal and received five RH-53D Sea Stallion helicopters for the minesweeping mission. David watched the helicopters use long cables and floating equipment with jet engines for propulsion of the minesweeping apparatus.“The helicopter comes down, drops them in the water…and they drag them along the surface,” he said. Whiskey Cobra attack helicopters and UH-1N Hueys provided air cover.
On the deployment David served as NCOIC of the tool room while the squadron was in the middle of a major upgrade of the tools needed to keep its helicopters flying. When the unexpected deployment began, all tools in the supply line were automatically canceled, creating a serious and urgent problem. After extensive coordination with the ship’s crew, he helped restore the supply line, complete the toolboxes, and issue them. A strong support team helped get the job done.
The tool room was located below deck and below the waterline. If the ship was hit by a mine or another explosive, any personnel below the waterline were in a high-risk area. “I was down below the waterline, so when we were called to quarters, everything would be locked down and you’re looking at the bulkhead, and you know you’re below the waterline and you know you are over there because there’s mines in the water. But you’re busy doing what you gotta do.” He added, “There’s really no time to think about it...you’re aware of it, but you have a job to do.”
During the deployment, Bob Hope came aboard the USS Okinawa for a Christmas special—an unexpected highlight.As a child, he never imagined he would one day join the Marine Corps, serve on a helicopter carrier in the Persian Gulf, watch Bob Hope perform live, and appear in the televised special.
After returning to California in June 1988, David resumed his role as NCOIC of the squadron tool room and earned his FAA Airframe and Powerplant license before leaving the Marines in January 1989.
After the military, David worked as an airframe and powerplant mechanic at Fallbrook Air Park and later Palomar Airport, maintaining flight school aircraft, privately owned planes, and military-contracted aviation assets. At Fallbrook, he also worked around racing aircraft and once served on the pit crew for his boss, Tom Aberle, when Aberle won gold in the biplane category at the Reno Air Races. His final aviation job reunited him with the Whiskey attack helicopter he had worked on as a Marine. He remains grateful for those years and still keeps in touch with many former colleagues.
The 1990s were unsettled and often difficult for David. His first marriage ended in divorce, but during that period he began to confront his rebellion and anger toward God that had shaped much of his earlier life. That change of heartbecame a turning point, and his renewed Christian faith helped him move forward.
Eventually, he returned to Massachusetts. After a brief job in corporate security, his brother Steven asked him to come work for him in the family dry-cleaning business and help oversee the multiple stores he had added since buying the business from their dad. He grudgingly said yes.
His return to the family business did, however, bring an unexpected blessing: he met Valerie, the mother of one of the store’s customer representatives. After a series of events, they had their first date on New Year’s Eve 1998 at a Chinese restaurant where they talked for hours. David left thinking, “There’s really something there.” Valerie felt the same way.They married in June 1999. Valerie had four children from a previous marriage, and the couple now has six grandchildren.
After their marriage, David and Valerie remained in Massachusetts, though they tried several times to move to Ohio, where Valerie was from. Each time, after prayer and consideration, the door seemed to close. In 2021, David attended an HMLA-169 reunion in Batesburg, South Carolina, and Valerie went with him. While David reconnected with Marines, Valerie spent time with the Marine wives at Aiken Fest. “I really like it here,” she later told David. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could retire here someday?” At the time, it felt more like a wish than a plan.
When they returned to Massachusetts, Valerie’s work environment changed, and she knew it was time to leave. She asked David whether South Carolina might be an option since she was already looking for a new job. David knew many things would have to fall into place, but the timing seemed providential. Remote work had become more common after COVID, and David was already working part time from home, removing one major obstacle.
Houses were selling quickly, but a new home in Graniteville, South Carolina, near Aiken, became available and fit their needs. They bought it below the asking price, which felt unlikely in that market and, to David and Valerie, like another sign that God was opening the way. By June 2, 2022, they were living in South Carolina, exactly where they had hoped to be. Today, David enjoys freshwater fishing and cooking, and Valerie is happy to have him cook.
On one final note, at the age of fifty-five, David went to college full time and earned a degree in business administration with high honors. One semester, he earned a 4.0 GPA. This was a far cry from hiding in the coat room in first grade.
David, the Marine Corps helped you overcome a tough start and gave you a path forward. You served in an essential job that most civilians rarely think about, but carried real risk while working below the waterline in waters where mines were a constant threat. Thank you for your service, and Semper Fi.
In 1970, his mother died during childbirth, and the baby also died. Three years later, tragedy struck again when his younger sister Christine was hit by a car and died on the anniversary of their mother’s death. David’s father later remarried, and the family grew by one more sibling. His stepmother was from South Carolina. “She tried to feed us grits and found out quickly that we liked pasta,” he remembered with humor. Ironically, David now lives in South Carolina, though he still does not care much for grits.
David recalled prejudice against Italians in his neighborhood during his childhood in the 1960s. “There were a lot of people who didn’t like Italians, and they didn’t like me,” he recalled. Fistfights were common, including with one boy he argued with almost daily. David won most of the fights, except against his nemesis.
Faith was central in David’s home, but after losing his mother and sister, he wanted little to do with God and rebelled against school and authority. “I never finished 10th grade,” he said. After being expelled, he looked for a different path and the Marine Corps Reserves offered that path. David chose the Marines partly because “I liked John Wayne and the movie Iwo Jima.”
David attended boot camp at Parris Island against the backdrop of the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War in April of 1975 and the capture of the S.S. Mayaguez the following month. The Mayaguez was a U.S. commercial vessel that was captured by the Khmer Rouge of Cambodia. The incident was resolved over a three-day period with a U.S. rescue of the crew that resulted in 41 American Marines dead.
Boot camp was hard. David’s stubbornness helped him endure it. He recalled constant pressure from the drill instructors and said, “Every single day I was there, I got hit by the drill instructors at least once.” He can laugh about itnow, though it was not funny then.
After graduating from Parris Island in June 1975, he attended Advanced Individual Training in helicopter maintenance in Millington, Tennessee, and later in California. David learned the technical skills that would shape much of his service. After completing his training, he served with HML-771 at NAS South Weymouth, Massachusetts, fulfilling reserve duties for the next six years.
During those years, he worked in dry cleaning, carpet installation, and as a baker’s helper. By early 1981, he needed a change and requested the Marine Corps to move him to active duty. They agreed on the condition that he complete a GED course, which he did. David was assigned to Attack Helicopter Squadron HMA-169 as a flightline mechanic at Camp Pendleton Auxiliary Airfield, which later became a full Marine Corps Air Station. HMA-169 eventually transitioned into a composite squadron, HMLA-169.
In 1983, David deployed on WestPac ’83 aboard the USS New Orleans. Much of his work involved corrosion control, a constant battle against saltwater damage. “It’s amazing how fast corrosion happens,” he said. “It ends up in places you would never think possible!”
WestPac included naval exercises across the western Pacific to sharpen readiness and strengthen coordination withallied forces. “It was a big show of force,” David recalled. The deployment included Operation Team Spirit with South Korean Marines and took him to the Philippines, Australia, Hong Kong, and Japan.
David’s next major overseas deployment was aboard the USS Okinawa. The Iran-Iraq War which began in 1980, had expanded into the Tanker War, with Iran and Iraq attacking commercial vessels near the Strait of Hormuz. Each side was trying to deprive the other of oil revenue needed to finance the war. After having its ships attacked by the Iranians, Kuwait requested U.S. protection for its tankers. The Navy launched Operation Earnest Will, which reflagged Kuwaiti vessels as American and escorted them through the contested waterway.
The Iranians had been placed mines in the Strait of Hormuz which created imminent danger for any vessels in the area. One of the first ships escorted by the Navy struck one of the mines. There were no minesweepers available in the Persian Gulf and U.S. helicopters equipped with minesweeping gear became essential to keeping shipping lanes open.
In October 1987, the USS Okinawa departed San Diego for the Persian Gulf in support of Operations Earnest Will and Prime Chance. Its mission was airborne mine countermeasures as part of MAGTAF-87, a Marine Air-Ground Task Force combining aviation and ground personnel. David recalled that the squadron had less than four days’ notice to pack the entire squadron before the ship departed.
The Okinawa left San Diego with serious propulsion problems and completed much of the deployment on one engine. Still, the ship crossed the Pacific and reached the Persian Gulf on his 30th birthday. There, it cross-decked with the Guadalcanal and received five RH-53D Sea Stallion helicopters for the minesweeping mission. David watched the helicopters use long cables and floating equipment with jet engines for propulsion of the minesweeping apparatus.“The helicopter comes down, drops them in the water…and they drag them along the surface,” he said. Whiskey Cobra attack helicopters and UH-1N Hueys provided air cover.
On the deployment David served as NCOIC of the tool room while the squadron was in the middle of a major upgrade of the tools needed to keep its helicopters flying. When the unexpected deployment began, all tools in the supply line were automatically canceled, creating a serious and urgent problem. After extensive coordination with the ship’s crew, he helped restore the supply line, complete the toolboxes, and issue them. A strong support team helped get the job done.
The tool room was located below deck and below the waterline. If the ship was hit by a mine or another explosive, any personnel below the waterline were in a high-risk area. “I was down below the waterline, so when we were called to quarters, everything would be locked down and you’re looking at the bulkhead, and you know you’re below the waterline and you know you are over there because there’s mines in the water. But you’re busy doing what you gotta do.” He added, “There’s really no time to think about it...you’re aware of it, but you have a job to do.”
During the deployment, Bob Hope came aboard the USS Okinawa for a Christmas special—an unexpected highlight.As a child, he never imagined he would one day join the Marine Corps, serve on a helicopter carrier in the Persian Gulf, watch Bob Hope perform live, and appear in the televised special.
After returning to California in June 1988, David resumed his role as NCOIC of the squadron tool room and earned his FAA Airframe and Powerplant license before leaving the Marines in January 1989.
After the military, David worked as an airframe and powerplant mechanic at Fallbrook Air Park and later Palomar Airport, maintaining flight school aircraft, privately owned planes, and military-contracted aviation assets. At Fallbrook, he also worked around racing aircraft and once served on the pit crew for his boss, Tom Aberle, when Aberle won gold in the biplane category at the Reno Air Races. His final aviation job reunited him with the Whiskey attack helicopter he had worked on as a Marine. He remains grateful for those years and still keeps in touch with many former colleagues.
The 1990s were unsettled and often difficult for David. His first marriage ended in divorce, but during that period he began to confront his rebellion and anger toward God that had shaped much of his earlier life. That change of heartbecame a turning point, and his renewed Christian faith helped him move forward.
Eventually, he returned to Massachusetts. After a brief job in corporate security, his brother Steven asked him to come work for him in the family dry-cleaning business and help oversee the multiple stores he had added since buying the business from their dad. He grudgingly said yes.
His return to the family business did, however, bring an unexpected blessing: he met Valerie, the mother of one of the store’s customer representatives. After a series of events, they had their first date on New Year’s Eve 1998 at a Chinese restaurant where they talked for hours. David left thinking, “There’s really something there.” Valerie felt the same way.They married in June 1999. Valerie had four children from a previous marriage, and the couple now has six grandchildren.
After their marriage, David and Valerie remained in Massachusetts, though they tried several times to move to Ohio, where Valerie was from. Each time, after prayer and consideration, the door seemed to close. In 2021, David attended an HMLA-169 reunion in Batesburg, South Carolina, and Valerie went with him. While David reconnected with Marines, Valerie spent time with the Marine wives at Aiken Fest. “I really like it here,” she later told David. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could retire here someday?” At the time, it felt more like a wish than a plan.
When they returned to Massachusetts, Valerie’s work environment changed, and she knew it was time to leave. She asked David whether South Carolina might be an option since she was already looking for a new job. David knew many things would have to fall into place, but the timing seemed providential. Remote work had become more common after COVID, and David was already working part time from home, removing one major obstacle.
Houses were selling quickly, but a new home in Graniteville, South Carolina, near Aiken, became available and fit their needs. They bought it below the asking price, which felt unlikely in that market and, to David and Valerie, like another sign that God was opening the way. By June 2, 2022, they were living in South Carolina, exactly where they had hoped to be. Today, David enjoys freshwater fishing and cooking, and Valerie is happy to have him cook.
On one final note, at the age of fifty-five, David went to college full time and earned a degree in business administration with high honors. One semester, he earned a 4.0 GPA. This was a far cry from hiding in the coat room in first grade.
David, the Marine Corps helped you overcome a tough start and gave you a path forward. You served in an essential job that most civilians rarely think about, but carried real risk while working below the waterline in waters where mines were a constant threat. Thank you for your service, and Semper Fi.