Marine Aircraft Group 33 (MAG-33) was commissioned on February 1, 1943 at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina. They moved to Marine Corps Auxiliary Field Bogue on September 27, 1943. On April 6, 1944, the group again transferred, this time to Marine Corps Air Station Eagle Mountain Lake, Texas where they spent the remainder of the summer training. In August, they moved on to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California to prepare for their deployment to the South Pacific.