VF-33

VF-33 was a United States Navy fighter squadron.

VF-33 History

The first squadron to be designated as Fighter Squadron ("FitRon" in USN parlance [Tillman, 1996, pp7-8.] ) Three Three (VF-33) was originally established as VGS-16 on 6 August 1942 and then redesignated as VC-16 on 1 March 1943. VC-16 was redesignated VF-33 on 15 August 1943 and equipped with the Grumman F6F Hellcat making their combat debut in the Solomon Islands. VF-33 was the first US Navy unit to use the F6F in the Solomon Islands campaign, being joined soon after by VF-38 and VF-40 . VF-33 was land based at this time, supporting the island-hopping Pacific War campaign. By the end of 1943 VF-33 was credited with 60 Japanese aircraft shot down, and had produced three aces (five or more kills); Lt.(jg) Frank E Schnieder with seven kills, Lt. C K Hildebrandt with five kills, and Lt.(jg) James J Kinsella also with five kills, three on VF-33, two flying F4F-4s with VF-72. [Tillman, 1996, pp.9-10, 19, 34, 88-89.] [ [http://users.accesscomm.ca/magnusfamily/ww2usa.htm List of USN aces of WW II] Retrieved: 23 July 2008] During WWII VF-33's patch was a black "Hellcat" leaping out of red flames on a white circle outlined in red; the motto "The Hellcats" was written in black script. [ [http://members.aol.com/brimiljeep/WebPages/SquadronPatchNAVYPg.html USN unit patches] Retrieved: 23 July 2008] After WWII, VF-33 was disestablished in July 1946.

A second Fighter Squadron Thirty Three was established on October 11, 1948 and equipped with the Chance-Vought F4U Corsair taking it into action in the Korean war and earning the Navy Unit Citation for that campaign. The squadron called themselves the "Tarsiers", which was a fierce monkey. The squadron affectionately called their Tarsier "Minky".

Jet transition

By 1962 the unit was flying the F-8 Crusader from the world’s first nuclear powered aircraft carrier USS "Enterprise", paired up with Fighter Squadron One Zero Two VF-102 enforcing the blockade of Cuba. In 1964 the unit transitioned to the F-4 Phantom and would fly the Phantom for the next seventeen years alongside its sister squadron VF-102. The first VF-33 Phantom type/model/series was the F-4B, which they flew until 1967 at which time they moved up to the F-4J which featured better radar, higher thrust engines, slatted tailplanes, extra fuel cells and a larger main wheels to handle the increased weight. Fighters from VF-33 were launched on 8 June 1967 in response to distress calls from the USS "Liberty", which was under attack from Israeli aircraft and navy torpedo boats in international waters off Egypt's Sinai, but were recalled by President Johnson, who was quoted as saying he "didn't want to embarrass our ally."

Vietnam Operations

It would not take long until VF-33 deployed to combat in South-East Asia aboard USS "America". During their time in the theatre VF-33 would drop over three million pounds of ordnance, flying 4000 combat hours over a period of 5 months. On July 10 1968 VF-33 downed a MiG-21, the first air-to-air kill by an East Coast Fighter Squadron over North Vietnam. After their return, VF-33 continued to fly with CVW-7, and deployed with USS "Independence". They would win several awards including the CNO Safety Award in 1969 and 1970 and during the 1975-1976 cruise they won the Golden Tailhook Award as the Navy recognised their skill at carrier landing. In February 1979 VF-33 had flown three years without accident.

Tomcat transition

In 1981 VF-33 transitioned to the F-14 Tomcat along with VF-102 and joined Carrier Air Wing One assigned to USS "America". Their first deployment was a grueling North Atlantic NATO deployment (Northern Wedding) between August and October 1982 aboard USS "America". VF-33 has used stars as part of their tail markings since the Crusader days and settled on a large star for their latter F-4 tenure and as the main symbol on the Tomcat. In 1985, they abandoned "Minky" and changed their name from “Tarsiers” to “Starfighters”, which was their radio callsign. The new patch featured a large star with a head-on view of a Tomcat. On August 20, 1985 VF-33 was the first squadron to complete 50 missile firings without a single failure.

Gulf of Sidra operations

In March 1986 VF-33 would bring their F-14s into a combat environment for the first time on board USS "America" with Carrier Air Wing 1 as they took part in Operation Attain Document in the Mediterranean Sea alongside USS "Saratoga" and USS "Coral Sea". VF-33 engaged two Libyan MiG-25s with intent on shooting down the F-14s, but the Tomcats outmaneuvered the Libyans and ended behind the Libyan fighters, but the pilots did not have permission to open fire. Along with VF-102 they provided air cover during the operation as the carrier group moved into the Gulf of Sidra, which was claimed by Libya to be the “Line of Death”. Libya claimed its territorial waters extended across the entire Gulf of Sidra as opposed to the internationally recognised limit of 12 miles, and because of this claim, any airplane or ship within these waters was in Libyan territory and liable to attack. US carriers occasionally challenged this assertion resulting in the first VF-41 Tomcat engagements with Libyan fighters in August 1981.

On April 15, 1986, after a terrorist attack on disco hall La Belle in Berlin, killing two American servicemen and a Turkish woman, President Ronald Reagan ordered airstrikes, called Operation El Dorado Canyon, against targets in Libya. F-111 bombers based at RAF Lakenheath and RAF Upper Heyford in the United Kingdom attacked targets in Tripoli while U.S. Navy A-6 Intruders from USS "America" and USS "Coral Sea" attacked targets in Benghazi. Navy and United States Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornets and Navy A-7’s attacked surface-to-air missile sites with AGM-88 HARM missiles. F-14 squadrons deployed in the Mediterranean, including VF-33, flew cover for the strike force. In 1986, VF-33 flew 895 continuous sorties without an abort.

In 1987 VF-33 made a short cruise on board the Navy’s newest carrier, the USS "Theodore Roosevelt". After workups in 1988, VF-33 deployed on board USS "America" to the North Atlantic in February 1989, and again for a six-month Med-IO cruise from May through November. In February 1990 VF-33 made a two and a half month transit from San Diego to Philadelphia Naval Shipyard providing fighter protection as the carrier made the journey around the southern tip of South America. VF-33 took part in several joint exercises with South American nations during the transit.

Desert Storm operations

When Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990, four aircraft carriers were deployed to the region to provide carrier based air support for Operation Desert Shield. As the deadline for Iraqi withdrawal from Kuwait approached in January 1991, USS "Theodore Roosevelt" and USS "America" deployed to the region via the Suez Canal. VF-33 deployed with USS "America" arriving just as Operation Desert Storm commenced. USS "America" flew sorties alongside USS "John F Kennedy" and USS "Saratoga" in the Red Sea before moving to the Persian Gulf to join USS "Midway", USS "Ranger" and USS "Roosevelt". VF-33 and her sister squadron VF-102 were only Tomcat squadrons to fly missions from both the Red Sea and Persian Gulf during Desert Storm.

Disestablishment

In 1993 a VF-33 airframe became the first F-14 to log 5000 flight hours. When the Navy decided to assign only a single TARPS Tomcat squadron per carrier air wing, VF-33 was not TARPS capable and despite the squadron's success in Desert Storm VF-33 was disestablished October 1, 1993. However, the tradition of VF-33 lives on through a very active alumni group that hosts a website and periodic reunions. [http://vf-33.org/index.htm]

References

Citations

Bibliography

* Tillman, Barrett. "Hellcat Aces of World War 2; Osprey Aircraft of the Aces 10". London: Osprey Publishing, 1996. ISBN 1-85532-596-9

External links

* [http://www.tomcatalley.com/squadron/vf33hist.htm VF-33 History]
*Combat history of the F-14 - Operations Against Libya
* [http://vf-33.org/index.htm VF-33 Reunion Website]
* [http://users.accesscomm.ca/magnusfamily/ww2usa.htm List of USN aces of WW II]
* [http://members.aol.com/brimiljeep/WebPages/SquadronPatchNAVYPg.html WWII USN Squadron patches and badges]