VAH-16, nicknamed the ''White Blades'', was a short-lived Heavy Attack Squadron of the
U.S. Navy, based at
NAS North Island, California. The squadron flew the
North American AJ Savage aircraft.
The squadron was established on 15 January 1958. On 13 Jun it established Detachment A in Hawaii and then relocated it to
NAS Agana
Naval Air Station Agana is a former United States Naval air station located on the island of Guam. It was opened by the Japanese Navy in 1943 and closed by the United States government in 1995. During and after its closure, it was operated alongs ...
, Guam, with four AJ-2 aircraft. On 1 Jul 1958, its primary mission of heavy attack high altitude bombing was changed to that of
aerial refueling
Aerial refueling, also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to another (the receiver) while both aircraft a ...
. The squadron was disestablished on 30 January 1959.
See also
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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 ...
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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-16
Heavy attack squadrons of the United States Navy
Wikipedia articles incorporating text from the Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons