Carrier Air Wing Thirteen (CVW-13) was a

carrier air wing A carrier air wing (abbreviated CVW) is an operational naval aviation organization composed of several aircraft squadrons and detachments of various types of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft. Organized, equipped and trained to conduct mo ...

of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

established for a short period at the end of the Cold War. There were three previous units which had been named Carrier Air Group Thirteen (CVG-13), dating as far back as 1942, though each of these units has a distinct lineage.

Carrier Air Wing THIRTEEN History

USS Coral Sea (CV-43) underway at sea in 1986

Carrier Air Wing Thirteen was established on 1 March 1984. CVW-13 served three Mediterranean deployments aboard . The group's first deployment to the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ...

from October 1985 to May 1986 was done with the

McDonnell Douglas F/A-18A Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twin-engine, supersonic, carrier-capable, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a fighter and attack aircraft (hence the F/A designation). Designed by McDonnell Douglas (now ...

s of VFA-131,

VFA-132 Strike Fighter Squadron 132 (VFA-132), also known as the "Privateers", was an aviation unit of the United States Navy that was based at Naval Air Station Cecil Field, Florida (USA), in service from 1984 to 1992. Their radio callsign was "Pirate." ...

VMFA-314 Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 (VMFA-314) is a United States Marine Corps F-35C Lightning II squadron. The squadron, known as the "Black Knights", is based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California and falls under the command of Marine ...

, and

VMFA-323 Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 323 (VMFA-323) is an aircraft carrier-based aviation squadron of the United States Marine Corps. The squadron is equipped with the McDonnell Douglas F/A-18C Hornet and is based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, ...

Grumman A-6E Intruder The Grumman A-6 Intruder is an American twinjet all-weather attack aircraft developed and manufactured by American aircraft company Grumman Aerospace and operated by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. It was designed in response to a 1957 r ...

s of VA-55,

Grumman E-2 Hawkeye The Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning (AEW) aircraft. This twin-turboprop aircraft was designed and developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s by the Grumman Aircraft ...

s from

VAW-127 Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 127 (VAW-127), nicknamed the "Seabats", was an aviation unit of the United States Navy in service from 1983 to 1991. The squadron was equipped with the E-2 Hawkeye, Grumman E-2C Hawkeye and was assigned only ...

Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler The Northrop Grumman (formerly Grumman) EA-6B Prowler is a twin-engine, four-seat, mid-wing electronic-warfare aircraft derived from the A-6 Intruder airframe. The EA-6A was the initial electronic warfare version of the A-6 used by the United ...

s of

VAQ-135 Electronic Attack Squadron 135 (VAQ-135), known as the "Black Ravens", is a United States Navy electronic attack squadron that currently operates the EA-18G Growler carrier-based electronic warfare jet aircraft. The squadron is permanently statio ...

, Douglas EA-3 Skywarriors of

VQ-2 Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron VQ-2, also known as "Batmen" and later "Sandeman," was an air reconnaissance squadron of the United States Navy, established on 1 September 1955 and based at NAS Whidbey Island, previously at NAVSTA Rota, Spain, ...

, and SH-3H Sea Kings from HS-17. During the cruise, CVW-13 participated in

Operation Eldorado Canyon The 1986 United States bombing of Libya, code-named Operation El Dorado Canyon, consisted of air strikes by the United States against Libya on Tuesday 15 April 1986. The attack was carried out by the U.S. Air Force (USAF), U.S. Navy and U.S. Mar ...

, striking several targets in

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Suda ...

. During the cruise, the wing was commanded by Commander Byron L. Duff. The wing deployed on two more Med Cruises aboard ''Coral Sea'' before being disestablished on 1 January 1991.

Carrier Air Groups designated CVG-13

There were three Carrier Air Groups designated ''Carrier Air Group THIRTEEN'' which existed between 1943 and 1962. All three were separate and distinct units and none of the three share a lineage with each other or with Carrier Air Wing THIRTEEN

First Carrier Air Group designated Carrier Air Group THIRTEEN, 1943-1945

The first Carrier Air Group Thirteen was established on 2 November 1943 and served for the duration of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. The air group served aboard USS ''Franklin'' (CV-13) in the Pacific. With the draw-down of United States military forces after the war, the group was disestablished on 20 October 1945.

Second Carrier Air Group designated Carrier Air Group THIRTEEN, 1944-1949

The second Carrier Air Group Thirteen was originally established as Carrier Air Group Eighty One (CVG-81) on 1 March 1944. On 1 November 1946 the Group was redesignated CVAG-13 and on 1 September 1948 it was redesignated CVG-13.

CVG-81

As originally formed, the group consisted of three squadrons giving it a balance of fighter, torpedo-bombing, and dive-bombing capabilities. As per Navy standards, the squadrons were numbered to match the air group, thus being designated VF-81 (fighter), VT-81 (torpedo), and

VB-81 Attack Squadron 174 (VA-174) also known as the "Hellrazors" was a United States Navy attack squadron based at Naval Air Station Cecil Field, Florida, and were attached to Light Attack Wing One. It was commissioned from 1944 to 1988. History Th ...

(dive bomber). The group was embarked on for transportation to

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

and then spent is first deployment aboard between 10 November 1944 and 13 March 1945. During this deployment, Marine squadrons

VMF-216 Marine Fighting Squadron 216 (VMF-216) was a reserve fighter squadron of the United States Marine Corps that was based out of Washington. Known as the “Bulldogs”, VMF-216 participated in numerous combat engagements in the Pacific Theater du ...

and

VMF-217 Marine Attack Squadron 217 (VMA-217) was a fighter squadron of the United States Marine Corps that was activated and fought during World War II. Known as “Max’s Wild Hares”, they fought in many areas of the Pacific War including the Batt ...

were attached to the group, adding a significant number of fighter-bombers to the ''Wasps complement. After the war, the air group did a second deployment to the Western Pacific, this time aboard the between 3 July 1946 and 15 April 1947. At this point, a fourth squadron had been added to the group: VBF-81, a fighter-bomber squadron. The unit transited the

Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a condui ...

without VB-81 before embarking on WestPac with its full complement.

CVAG-13

Soon after the group returned from this deployment, the Navy changed its system of air group designations to one designating the type of carrier the group was assigned to and thus its general complement of aircraft types. In line with this, CVG-81 was re-designated Attack Carrier Air Group Thirteen (CVAG-13) on 15 November 1946. As an attack carrier air group, the unit was composed of two fighter squadrons (VF-13A and VF-14A) and two attack squadrons (VA-13A and VA-14A). The air group was stationed at

NAS San Diego Naval Air Station North Island or NAS North Island , at the north end of the Coronado peninsula on San Diego Bay in San Diego, California, is part of the largest aerospace-industrial complex in the United States Navy – Naval Base Coronado (NB ...

between 1948 and 1949.

CVG-13

On 1 September 1948, the Navy reversed course on air group designations, dropping "attack" from them, and re-designating CVAG-13 simply as Carrier Air Group Thirteen (CVG-13). As the second unit to carry this name, its squadrons were also re-designated, with the fighter squadrons becoming VF-131 and VF-132 while the attack squadrons became VA-15 and VA-135. A detachment from HU-2 also was attached to provide the helicopters aboard for transport and rescue duties. CVG-13 once again deployed in the West Pacific on Princeton between 1 October 1948 and 23 December 1948. CVG-13 was disestablished on 30 November 1949.

Third Carrier Air Group designated Carrier Air Group THIRTEEN, 1961-1962

The third Carrier Air Group Thirteen was established on 21 August 1961. It was deployed on shakedown in the Caribbean on from 3 March 1962 to 6 May 1962. This group was assigned the re-established Fighter Squadrons 131 and 132, Attack Squadrons 133, 134, and 135, and Heavy Attack Squadron 10. Additionally, detachments from HU-2, VAW-12, and

VFP-62 Light Photographic Squadron 62 (VFP-62) was an aviation unit of the United States Navy in service from 1949 to 1968. The squadron provided a detachment of reconnaissance planes for each of the carrier air wings of the U.S. Atlantic Fleet. History ...

were with the group during their deployment. After returning from the cruise, CVG-13 was disestablished on 1 October 1962.

References

{{United States Navy Carrier air wings CVW-13 Military units and formations established in 1944 Military units and formations disestablished in 1991 1944 establishments in the United States 1991 disestablishments in the United States