VF-24
Encyclopedia
VF-24 Fighter Squadron 24, called the Fighting Renegades was a fighter
squadron
of the United States Navy
.
aboard the . The squadron transitioned to the F8U Crusader in 1957. Then on 9 March 1959, the Squadron was redesignated VF-24 Fighter Squadron 24.
aboard , USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) and from 1959 to 1975. While on duty, the squadron earned the Presidential Unit Citation
, Navy Unit Commendation
(2 awards), Meritorious Unit Commendation
(5 awards), Battle Efficiency Award
(1972), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
(3 awards), and Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.
While deployed aboard USS Bon Homme Richard (Carrier Air Wing Twenty One), Lieutenant Commander Bobby C. Lee and Lieutenant Phillip R. Wood became the first VF-24 pilots to shoot down MiG
aircraft over North Vietnam
on May 19, 1967,. The MiGs were shot downed with AIM-9 Sidewinder
air-to-air missiles. Then on July 21, 1967, Commander Marion H. Issacks (XO
) and Lieutenant Commander Robert L. Kirkwood made the 3rd and 4th MiG kills for their Squadron with 20 mm guns and Sidewinder missiles. The MiG-killing "Fighting Renegades" became one of the Navy's first "Ace" squadrons.
the Squadron transitioned to the F-14 Tomcat
and received their first aircraft on December 9, 1975. During the rest of the 1970s and early 1990s, VF-24 deployed to the Western Pacific with . VF-24 won several awards: the Admiral Joseph Clifton Award, the Battle Efficiency “E”, the CNO Aviation Safety Award, and two Sea Service Deployment Award
s. The Squadron clean record was completed with six years and 22.000 flight hours without an accident.
s operations and a WESTPAC which included 121 concurrent days of Indian Ocean
Operations, the longest of any conventional powered aircraft carrier to date. The move to USS Ranger was because the Constellation had F/A-18 Hornet
capability added and the Ranger cruise was nicknamed "DeathCruise '83/'84" due to the loss of 11 crewmen. In August 1984, VF-24 and its airwing began workups with the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63)
with another WESTPAC and Indian Ocean cruise in July 1985.
In April 1986, VF-24 was called upon to execute Operation Coyote which involved positioning four fully mission capable
F-14s, accompanying aircrew and over 150 maintenance personnel and necessary spare parts over 2,000 miles away within 46 hours. From the time of execute order to go, aircraft were on deck in Adak
, Alaska
, in less than 30 hours. This fast paced, strategically significant mission continued for seven days, despite limited command and control assets and an extremely difficult environment at Adak. Mission intercepts, employing innovative planning and tactics, of Soviet
reconnaissance aircraft were well beyond expected range and were determined to be an overwhelming success. In October 1986, the Fighting Renegades surpassed the 3 years Foreign Object Damage
(FOD) free mark; an accomplishment no other F-14 fighter squadron matched. VF-24 deployed in January 1987, aboard USS Kitty Hawk for a six-month around-the-world cruise. The Fighting Renegades were awarded the 1986 CNO Aviation Safety Award, completed over 20,500 mishap free flight hours, achieved a record setting 97 consecutive days Full Mission Capable aircraft readiness, initiated air-to-air banner gunnery launches from the deck of USS Kitty Hawk and completed its 3rd consecutive FOD free cruise. Upon returning to NAS Miramar, VF-24 was again selected to deploy to Adak, Alaska, for their second Operation Coyote mission. VF-24 was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation and Navy Expeditionary Medal
for the 1987 deployment.
VF-24 was busy in 1988 as they spent 70% of the year deployed and had joined with the rest of the airwing. They deployed to the northern and western Pacific and the Indian Ocean and were part of the 1988 Summer Olympics
in Seoul
during Operation Olympic Presence as well as doing exercises with Midway and the Singapore
, Malaysian and Thailand
Air force
s. 1988 was another year where VF-24 received a CNO Aviation Safety Award. Another cruise began in 1989 with the Nimitz through the Bering Strait
. Upon their arrival in San Diego in August they began the transition to the F-14B. VF-24 was one of the first Pacific Fleet
Fighter Squadrons to do so.
in February 1991 and were one of two west coast squadrons to deploy the F-14B. In April 1991, VF-24 began flying missions in support of Operation Provide Comfort
over Iraq
and Kuwait
and participated in detachments to Bahrain
and the United Arab Emirates
. In June of the same year, VF-24 had completed nine years and 36.000 flight hours without incident. They returned to Miramar in August the same year.
VF-24 began an aggressive turnaround cycle by participating in RED FLAG exercise
at Nellis AFB in February 1992. VF-24 flew sorties as "red air" against a coordinated multinational strike team. As with all Navy F-14 squadrons, VF-24 were Bombcat qualified, carrying "dumb" munitions such as Mk-80 series bombs, Mk-20 cluster munitions, air laid sea mines, TALD surface to air missile decoys and practice bombs. Laser guided bombs could be carried, but had to be buddy lazed. For all its time with the F-14 Tomcat, VF-24 was teamed with VF-211 as part of Carrier Air Wing Nine. Their last cruise took place from November 1995 to May 1996, onboard the USS Nimitz. Unfortunately, because of the declining role of the Tomcat's primary mission (as a platform for the Phoenix missile system
) and the development of the AMRAAM missile system, the Navy in the mid 90s chose the F/A-18 Hornet
and the Super Hornet as a replacement for the aging Tomcat rather than expand the F-14D program. As a result, VF-24 was disestablished on August 31, 1996.
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
squadron
Squadron (aviation)
A squadron in air force, army aviation or naval aviation is mainly a unit comprising a number of military aircraft, usually of the same type, typically with 12 to 24 aircraft, sometimes divided into three or four flights, depending on aircraft type and air force...
of the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
.
Background
Fighter Squadron 24 was originally commissioned as Fighter Squadron 211 in June 1955 at NAS Moffett Field. The unit flew the FJ-3 FuryFJ Fury
The North American FJ-2/-3 Fury were a series of swept-wing carrier-capable fighters for the United States Navy and Marine Corps. Based on the United States Air Force's F-86 Sabre, these aircraft featured folding wings, and a longer nose landing strut designed to both increase angle of attack upon...
aboard the . The squadron transitioned to the F8U Crusader in 1957. Then on 9 March 1959, the Squadron was redesignated VF-24 Fighter Squadron 24.
History
VF-24 made deployments to the Western PacificPacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
aboard , USS Bon Homme Richard (CVA-31) and from 1959 to 1975. While on duty, the squadron earned the Presidential Unit Citation
Presidential Unit Citation (US)
The Presidential Unit Citation, originally called the Distinguished Unit Citation, is awarded to units of the Armed Forces of the United States and allies for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enemy on or after 7 December 1941...
, Navy Unit Commendation
Navy Unit Commendation
The Navy Unit Commendation of the United States Navy is an award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944...
(2 awards), Meritorious Unit Commendation
Meritorious Unit Commendation
The Meritorious Unit Commendation is a mid-level unit award of the United States military which is awarded to any military command which displays exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service, heroic deeds, or valorous actions....
(5 awards), Battle Efficiency Award
Battle Efficiency Award
The Battle Effectiveness Award , commonly known as the Battle "E", is awarded annually to the small number of U.S...
(1972), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal
The Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal is a military award of the United States military, which was first created in 1961 by Executive Order of President John Kennedy...
(3 awards), and Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal.
Events of the 1960s
Mig
-Industry:*MiG, now Mikoyan, a Russian aircraft corporation, formerly the Mikoyan-Gurevich Design Bureau*Metal inert gas welding or MIG welding, a type of welding using an electric arc and a shielding gas-Business and finance:...
aircraft over North Vietnam
North Vietnam
The Democratic Republic of Vietnam , was a communist state that ruled the northern half of Vietnam from 1954 until 1976 following the Geneva Conference and laid claim to all of Vietnam from 1945 to 1954 during the First Indochina War, during which they controlled pockets of territory throughout...
on May 19, 1967,. The MiGs were shot downed with AIM-9 Sidewinder
AIM-9 Sidewinder
The AIM-9 Sidewinder is a heat-seeking, short-range, air-to-air missile carried mostly by fighter aircraft and recently, certain gunship helicopters. The missile entered service with United States Air Force in the early 1950s, and variants and upgrades remain in active service with many air forces...
air-to-air missiles. Then on July 21, 1967, Commander Marion H. Issacks (XO
Executive officer
An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
) and Lieutenant Commander Robert L. Kirkwood made the 3rd and 4th MiG kills for their Squadron with 20 mm guns and Sidewinder missiles. The MiG-killing "Fighting Renegades" became one of the Navy's first "Ace" squadrons.
1970s
VF-24 made its last F-8 Crusader cruise aboard USS Hancock in 1975. Upon return to San DiegoSan Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
the Squadron transitioned to the F-14 Tomcat
F-14 Tomcat
The Grumman F-14 Tomcat is a supersonic, twin-engine, two-seat, variable-sweep wing fighter aircraft. The Tomcat was developed for the United States Navy's Naval Fighter Experimental program following the collapse of the F-111B project...
and received their first aircraft on December 9, 1975. During the rest of the 1970s and early 1990s, VF-24 deployed to the Western Pacific with . VF-24 won several awards: the Admiral Joseph Clifton Award, the Battle Efficiency “E”, the CNO Aviation Safety Award, and two Sea Service Deployment Award
Sea Service Ribbon
A Sea Service Ribbon is an award of the United States Navy, United States Coast Guard and the United States Army which recognizes those service members who have performed military duty while stationed on a vessel at sea....
s. The Squadron clean record was completed with six years and 22.000 flight hours without an accident.
1980s
Further records were made in 1980s. In 1983, VF-24 along with Carrier Air Wing Nine, was the assigned to the as part of Battle Group Echo. The first deployment by Central AmericaCentral America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
s operations and a WESTPAC which included 121 concurrent days of Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
Operations, the longest of any conventional powered aircraft carrier to date. The move to USS Ranger was because the Constellation had F/A-18 Hornet
F/A-18 Hornet
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic, all-weather carrier-capable multirole fighter jet, designed to dogfight and attack ground targets . Designed by McDonnell Douglas and Northrop, the F/A-18 was derived from the latter's YF-17 in the 1970s for use by the United States Navy and...
capability added and the Ranger cruise was nicknamed "DeathCruise '83/'84" due to the loss of 11 crewmen. In August 1984, VF-24 and its airwing began workups with the USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63)
USS Kitty Hawk (CV-63)
The supercarrier USS Kitty Hawk , formerly CVA-63, was the second naval ship named after Kitty Hawk, North Carolina, the site of the Wright brothers' first powered airplane flight...
with another WESTPAC and Indian Ocean cruise in July 1985.
In April 1986, VF-24 was called upon to execute Operation Coyote which involved positioning four fully mission capable
Availability
In telecommunications and reliability theory, the term availability has the following meanings:* The degree to which a system, subsystem, or equipment is in a specified operable and committable state at the start of a mission, when the mission is called for at an unknown, i.e., a random, time...
F-14s, accompanying aircrew and over 150 maintenance personnel and necessary spare parts over 2,000 miles away within 46 hours. From the time of execute order to go, aircraft were on deck in Adak
Adak Island
Adak Island is an island near the western extent of the Andreanof Islands group of the Aleutian Islands in Alaska. Alaska's southernmost town, Adak, is located on the island...
, Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
, in less than 30 hours. This fast paced, strategically significant mission continued for seven days, despite limited command and control assets and an extremely difficult environment at Adak. Mission intercepts, employing innovative planning and tactics, of Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
reconnaissance aircraft were well beyond expected range and were determined to be an overwhelming success. In October 1986, the Fighting Renegades surpassed the 3 years Foreign Object Damage
Foreign object damage
Foreign Object Debris is a substance, debris or article alien to a vehicle or system which would potentially cause damage.Foreign Object Damage is any damage attributed to a foreign object that can be expressed in physical or economic terms that may or may not degrade the product's required...
(FOD) free mark; an accomplishment no other F-14 fighter squadron matched. VF-24 deployed in January 1987, aboard USS Kitty Hawk for a six-month around-the-world cruise. The Fighting Renegades were awarded the 1986 CNO Aviation Safety Award, completed over 20,500 mishap free flight hours, achieved a record setting 97 consecutive days Full Mission Capable aircraft readiness, initiated air-to-air banner gunnery launches from the deck of USS Kitty Hawk and completed its 3rd consecutive FOD free cruise. Upon returning to NAS Miramar, VF-24 was again selected to deploy to Adak, Alaska, for their second Operation Coyote mission. VF-24 was awarded a Meritorious Unit Commendation and Navy Expeditionary Medal
Navy Expeditionary Medal
The Navy Expeditionary Medal is an award of the United States Navy which was first created in August 1936 by General Orders of the Department of the Navy...
for the 1987 deployment.
VF-24 was busy in 1988 as they spent 70% of the year deployed and had joined with the rest of the airwing. They deployed to the northern and western Pacific and the Indian Ocean and were part of the 1988 Summer Olympics
1988 Summer Olympics
The 1988 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIV Olympiad, were an all international multi-sport events celebrated from September 17 to October 2, 1988 in Seoul, South Korea. They were the second summer Olympic Games to be held in Asia and the first since the 1964 Summer Olympics...
in Seoul
Seoul
Seoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea. A megacity with a population of over 10 million, it is the largest city proper in the OECD developed world...
during Operation Olympic Presence as well as doing exercises with Midway and the Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Malaysian and Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
Air force
Air force
An air force, also known in some countries as an air army, is in the broadest sense, the national military organization that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an army, navy or...
s. 1988 was another year where VF-24 received a CNO Aviation Safety Award. Another cruise began in 1989 with the Nimitz through the Bering Strait
Bering Strait
The Bering Strait , known to natives as Imakpik, is a sea strait between Cape Dezhnev, Chukotka Autonomous Okrug, Russia, the easternmost point of the Asian continent and Cape Prince of Wales, Alaska, USA, the westernmost point of the North American continent, with latitude of about 65°40'N,...
. Upon their arrival in San Diego in August they began the transition to the F-14B. VF-24 was one of the first Pacific Fleet
United States Pacific Fleet
The United States Pacific Fleet is a Pacific Ocean theater-level component command of the United States Navy that provides naval resources under the operational control of the United States Pacific Command. Its home port is at Pearl Harbor Naval Base, Hawaii. It is commanded by Admiral Patrick M...
Fighter Squadrons to do so.
1990s
One year later, VF-24 made history as the first F-14 squadron to drop air-to-ground ordnance at NAS Fallon during Integrated Air Wing Training. In November 1990, they began preparations for deployment and headed for the Persian GulfPersian Gulf
The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
in February 1991 and were one of two west coast squadrons to deploy the F-14B. In April 1991, VF-24 began flying missions in support of Operation Provide Comfort
Operation Provide Comfort
Operation Provide Comfort and Provide Comfort II were military operations by the United States and some of its Gulf War allies, starting in April 1991, to defend Kurds fleeing their homes in northern Iraq in the aftermath of the Persian Gulf War and deliver humanitarian aid to them.-Operation...
over Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
and participated in detachments to Bahrain
Bahrain
' , officially the Kingdom of Bahrain , is a small island state near the western shores of the Persian Gulf. It is ruled by the Al Khalifa royal family. The population in 2010 stood at 1,214,705, including 235,108 non-nationals. Formerly an emirate, Bahrain was declared a kingdom in 2002.Bahrain is...
and the United Arab Emirates
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates, abbreviated as the UAE, or shortened to "the Emirates", is a state situated in the southeast of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia on the Persian Gulf, bordering Oman, and Saudi Arabia, and sharing sea borders with Iraq, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, and Iran.The UAE is a...
. In June of the same year, VF-24 had completed nine years and 36.000 flight hours without incident. They returned to Miramar in August the same year.
VF-24 began an aggressive turnaround cycle by participating in RED FLAG exercise
RED FLAG exercise
Red Flag is an advanced aerial combat training exercise hosted at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada and Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska, the latter location being known as Red Flag – Alaska and being a successor to the previous COPE THUNDER exercise series. Since 1975, air crews from the United States...
at Nellis AFB in February 1992. VF-24 flew sorties as "red air" against a coordinated multinational strike team. As with all Navy F-14 squadrons, VF-24 were Bombcat qualified, carrying "dumb" munitions such as Mk-80 series bombs, Mk-20 cluster munitions, air laid sea mines, TALD surface to air missile decoys and practice bombs. Laser guided bombs could be carried, but had to be buddy lazed. For all its time with the F-14 Tomcat, VF-24 was teamed with VF-211 as part of Carrier Air Wing Nine. Their last cruise took place from November 1995 to May 1996, onboard the USS Nimitz. Unfortunately, because of the declining role of the Tomcat's primary mission (as a platform for the Phoenix missile system
AIM-54 Phoenix
The AIM-54 Phoenix is a radar-guided, long-range air-to-air missile , carried in clusters of up to six missiles on F-14 Tomcats, its only launch platform. The Phoenix was the United States' only long-range air-to-air missile. The weapons system based on Phoenix was the world's first to allow...
) and the development of the AMRAAM missile system, the Navy in the mid 90s chose the F/A-18 Hornet
F/A-18 Hornet
The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is a supersonic, all-weather carrier-capable multirole fighter jet, designed to dogfight and attack ground targets . Designed by McDonnell Douglas and Northrop, the F/A-18 was derived from the latter's YF-17 in the 1970s for use by the United States Navy and...
and the Super Hornet as a replacement for the aging Tomcat rather than expand the F-14D program. As a result, VF-24 was disestablished on August 31, 1996.
See also
- History of the United States NavyHistory of the United States NavyThe history of the United States Navy divides into two major periods: the "Old Navy", a small but respected force of sailing ships that was also notable for innovation in the use of ironclads during the American Civil War, and the "New Navy", the result of a modernization effort that began in the...
- List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons
- List of United States Navy aircraft squadrons