VAH-123, nicknamed the ''Professionals'' from 1961 onward, was a Heavy Attack Squadron of the
U.S. 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 of ...
, based at
NAS Whidbey Island
Naval Air Station Whidbey Island (NASWI) is a naval air station of the United States Navy located on two pieces of land near Oak Harbor, on Whidbey Island, in Island County, Washington.
The main portion of the base, Ault Field, is about ...
, Washington. It was established on 15 June 1957 as Heavy Attack Training Unit, Pacific (HATUPAC). On 29 June 1959 it was redesignated as VAH-123. The squadron was disestablished on 1 February 1971, after eleven years of service.
Operational history
During its time, the squadron flew many different aircraft types, beginning in the years shown:
Lockheed P-2 Neptune
The Lockheed P-2 Neptune (designated P2V by the United States Navy prior to September 1962) is a maritime patrol and anti-submarine warfare (ASW) aircraft. It was developed for the US Navy by Lockheed to replace the Lockheed PV-1 Ventura and ...
(1957);
Douglas F3D Skyknight
The Douglas F3D Skyknight (later designated F-10 Skyknight) is an American twin-engined, mid-wing jet fighter aircraft manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company in El Segundo, California. The F3D was designed as a carrier-based all-weather ...
(1957);
Grumman F-9 Cougar
The Grumman F9F/F-9 Cougar is a carrier-based fighter aircraft for the United States Navy and United States Marine Corps. Based on Grumman's earlier F9F Panther, the Cougar replaced the Panther's straight wing with a more modern swept wing. Th ...
(1958);
Douglas A-3 Skywarrior
The Douglas A-3 Skywarrior is a jet-powered strategic bomber that was developed and produced by the Douglas Aircraft Company. It was designed by Douglas on behalf of the United States Navy, which sought a carrier-capable strategic bomber. Duri ...
(1958, with several variants over the years); and
Grumman A-6 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 ...
(1966).
The unit was established to train personnel for the heavy attack mission, including the pilots, bombardier/navigators and aircrewmen. It retained that mission throughout its life. In 1959, it incorporated maintenance training into its mission, thereby providing a complete training program for all aspects of the heavy attack community's operational requirements.
In 1967, VAH-123 was relieved of its mission of replacement training in the A-6 ''Intruder'' when VA-128 was established as a separate squadron and assumed that job. When VAH-123 was disestablished, the mission of replacement training for the A-3/KA-3B was transferred to
VAQ-130
Electronic Attack Squadron 130 (VAQ-130), also known as the "Zappers", is an EA-18G Growler squadron of the United States Navy based aboard Naval Air Station Whidbey Island. Part of Carrier Air Wing 3, the ''Zappers'' deploy aboard the aircraft car ...
.
See also
*
History of the United States Navy
The history of the United States Navy divides into two major periods: the "Old Navy", a small but respected force of sailing ships that was notable for innovation in the use of ironclads during the American Civil War, and the "New Navy" the ...
*
List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons
There are hundreds of US Navy aircraft squadrons which are not currently active dating back to before World War II (the U.S. Navy operated aircraft prior to World War I, but it did not organize them in squadrons until after that war). To be mo ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vah-123
Heavy attack squadrons of the United States Navy
Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons