VF-31
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The VF-31 Tomcatters are a U.S. Navy strike fighter squadron stationed at NAS Oceana. Currently flying the F-14D Super Tomcat and will transition to the F/A-18E Super Hornet in September 2006.
History
VF-31 is the second oldest active US Navy squadron. VF-31 was originally established as VF-1B Shooting Stars on July 1 1935 flying the Boeing F4B. Two years later the unit switched designation to VF-6 as well as aircraft and began flying the Grumman F3F. Between the years 1937 and 1943 VF-6 flew the F3F-2 and two variants of the Grumman F4F and ended with the F4F-4. In July 1943 VF-6 swapped designations with VF-3, The Felix Cat Squadron, and began flying the F6F Hellcat. Both squadrons claimed the Felix mascot and callsign after the switch, which caused controversy for the coming three years. Finally in 1946 VF-3 became VF-3A, flying the F8F Bearcat, while VF-6 was decommissioned. The Chief of Naval Operations approved the adoption of the Felix the Cat name and callsign for VF-3A’s use.
Through the years the Tomcatters and their predecessors have served on many of the Navy's aircraft carriers, including the first, the USS Langley; the second, USS Langley; and the sixth, USS Enterprise. They were aboard USS Enterprise during the bombing of Pearl Harbor as well as the battles of Wake Island, Marcus Island, Midway, Guadalcanal, and the Eastern Solomon Islands. In 1980, VF-31 and USS Saratoga concluded a 24-year period of continuous service together, the longest in naval history.
On August 7 1948. VF-3A became the VF-31 Tomcatters. For almost four years, the Tomcatters flew the F9F Panther, the squadrons first jet aircraft. From 1952 to 1957, VF-31 flew the F2H Banshee. In 1957, the squadron switched to the F3H Demon, flying it through 1962. For two years after this the Tomcatters flew the F-3B variant before transitioning to the F-4 Phantom. After two years with the B model, the squadron switched to the F-4J, and flew this through 1981.
VF-31 is the only US squadron (of all three branches) to have scored confirmed kills in three wars, World War II, the Korean war and the Vietnam war. In 1972, flying the F-4J Phantom, Tomcatter aircrew shot down a MiG-21 over North Vietnam and in doing so made VF-31 the only Navy fighter squadron to achieve aerial victories in three wars.
VF-31 received the F-14 Tomcat in early 1981. The squadrons first cruise was onboard the USS John F. Kennedy and in 1983 they embarked on their fourth cruise with USS John F. Kennedy and the cruise took the carrier and it’s air wing to the southern Mediterranean of the North African coast. VF-31 regularly flew over Lebanese and Syrian positions in support of multi-national peacekeeping operations, often being fired at by Syrian AAA, which had little chance of hittng the fast and high F-14s. However, during a mission in early December, heat-seeking SA-7 SAM’s were launched at the F-14s. Although both Tomcats were able to return safely to the Kennedy, this incident led to US Navy retaliatory strikes. On December 4 aircraft from both carriers in the Mediterranean Sea, the Kennedy and USS Independence launched strikes against SAM sites, although with losses, one A-7 and one A-6.
VF-31 shifted carriers and air wing in April 1985 and was now onboard the USS Forrestal along with it’s sister squadron, VF-11 Red Rippers. They stayed with the Forrestal until 1992 when it became the US Navy’s replacement for USS Lexington (AVT-16) as a permanent training carrier. VF-31 (and VF-11) switched carriers, planes and home bases at the same time. Moving from NAS Oceana to NAS Miramar and to the USS Carl Vinson, and changed their F-14As for the new and improved F-14Ds.
The stay at Miramar didn’t last very long as VF-31 and VF-11 moved back to Oceana in 1997. .The squadron was very busy that year, they sent a single F-14D and crew to the 1997 Paris Air Salon, primarily to promote the LANTIRN capabilities F-14 squadrons was receiving. A few months later several aircraft deployed to their old home of NAS (now MCAS after the United States Marine Corps and taken over the base) Miramar, along with other squadrons from CVW-14, for airwing workups. The detachment featured a lot of live weapon firing, including the dropping of four 2000lb bombs from an F-14 in a single go. They also took part in Roving Sands '97, the world's largest joint air operations exercise.
During its long history VF-31 has received the Battle "E" for the best fighter squadron in the Atlantic Fleet, the prestigious Admiral Joseph Clifton Award for the top fighter squadron in the Navy, and the Chief of Naval Operations Safety "S" award.
VF-31 participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2003 onboard USS Abraham Lincoln. The squadron flew 585 sorties totalling 1744 flight hours, dropping 239 LGB/JDAM/MK-82. Their very first mission in the war saw two F-14Ds paired with four F/A-18Es from VFA-115 as they attacked a missile production facility in the Karbala area some 40 miles southwest of Baghdad. Each F-14 carried two 2000-lb JDAM bombs. During this mission, an AWACS controller advised the strike package (which also consisted if a United States Marine Corps EA-6B Prowler and a section of USAF F-16 SEAD flight) that a Tu-16 had been located at the Al Taqaddum air base. The airfield was about 30 miles from their current position. The F-14 lead (crewed by the VF-31 commanding officer) quickly devised a new timing plan which allowed the F-16s and the EA-6B to provide converge for both strike packages and the JDAM bombs were quickly reprogrammed for their new target. The F-16s supported the ingress and quickly turned their attention to the Super Hornets as the F-14Ds destroyed the Iraqi bomber. The F-14s were greeted by intense AAA and SAM as they departed from the target area. All targets hit (as well as the missile facility which was attacked by the Super Hornets).
After returning from the last WESTPAC cruise for the F-14 on October 31 2004 VF-31 returned home to Naval Air Station (NAS) Oceana. As part of Carrier Air Wing (CVW) 14, the squadron was deployed on USS John C. Stennis, and the squadron became the last to fly F-14 Tomcats over the skies of the Pacific Fleet. VF-31 continued to operate with the remaining F-14 squadrons as part of the Atlantic Fleet and was teamed up with VF-213 Blacklions, also flying F-14D, for the very last cruise ever with the F-14 in 2005-2006 onboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt.
On February 7 2006 was the last recovery of F-14 Tomcats from a combat mission. VF-31 was credited with being the last F-14 unit to drop a bomb. Lt. Bill Frank, a VF-31 pilot, was credited with the final bomb drop in combat. During their final deployment with USS Theodore Roosevelt, VF-31 and 213 collectively completed 1,163 combat sorties totaling 6,876 flight hours, and dropped 9,500 pounds of ordnance during reconnaissance, surveillance, and close air support missions in support of OIF.
On March 10, 2006, VF-31 and VF-213 returned to NAS Oceana after the final F-14 cruise. All 22 tomcats flew together in a wedge formation over NAS Oceana as hundreds of people cheered.
VF-31 are to transition to the F/A-18E Super Hornet in September 2006, making VF-31 the last F-14 squadron.
History of the Felix Insignia
The squadron emblem is the famous cartoon character Felix the Cat, running with a large spherical bomb with a lighted fuse. The yellow field and outline were omitted from the aircraft and four stars at the end of a pair of sweeps were added. This emblem can be seen on the fuselage of the aircraft above the wing.Several well-known aviators have flown with Felix on their shoulders, including Charles Lindbergh and Butch O'Hare.
The "Fighting 31" today specializes in night fighting -- their motto is "We get ours at night."
Links and reference
- [VF-31 in WW II (1943-1945)]
- [Tomcatters Association]
- [Official VF-31 Web Site]
- [VF-31 History]
- [Fighter Squadron THREE ONE (VF-31)Tomcatters]
- [TR Traps Last Tomcat from Combat Mission]
- Tony Holmes (2005). US Navy F-14 Tomcat Units of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Osprey Publishing Limited.
- [U.S. Navy Retires 'Top Gun' Jets]
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