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Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 78 (VAW-78), nicknamed the "Fighting Escargots" or "Slugs" was a reserve Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron of the
In September 1975, VAW-78 became a component of Carrier Air Wing Reserve TWENTY. Two years later, the squadron transitioned to the E-2B "Hawkeye" aircraft. During March 1983, the first E-2C "Hawkeye" was introduced to the squadron and remains in use today. This milestone marked the first current tactical fleet aircraft to be utilized in the Naval Air Reserve.
Its most important contribution was with the tracking and
VAW-78 Global security website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaw-78 Early warning squadrons of the United States Navy
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 ...
. It was established on 1 July 1970 as part of a major reorganization of the Naval Air Reserve and deactivated on 31 March 2005.
Squadron History
1970s
The Fighting Escargots was established in July 1970 atNAS Norfolk
Naval Station Norfolk is a United States Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia, that is the headquarters and home port of the U.S. Navy's Fleet Forces Command. The installation occupies about of waterfront space and of pier and wharf space of the Hamp ...
as a component of Anti-Submarine Group Reserve Seventy. The squadron initially operated the E-1B Tracer
The Grumman E-1 Tracer was the first purpose-built airborne early warning aircraft used by the United States Navy. It was a derivative of the Grumman C-1 Trader and entered service in 1958. It was replaced by the more modern Grumman E-2 Hawkeye ...
aircraft.
In September 1975, VAW-78 became a component of Carrier Air Wing Reserve TWENTY. Two years later, the squadron transitioned to the E-2B "Hawkeye" aircraft. During March 1983, the first E-2C "Hawkeye" was introduced to the squadron and remains in use today. This milestone marked the first current tactical fleet aircraft to be utilized in the Naval Air Reserve.
1980s
VAW-78 operated on boardaircraft carriers
An aircraft carrier is a warship that serves as a seagoing airbase, equipped with a full-length flight deck and facilities for carrying, arming, deploying, and recovering aircraft. Typically, it is the capital ship of a fleet, as it allows a ...
on five extended periods for active duty training of its Navy Reserve personnel. The squadron participated in many exercises, including the UNITAS Unitas may refer to:
* 306 Unitas, a main belt asteroid
* UNITAS, a multi-lateral naval exercise in South and Central America
* Unitas Capital, a private equity firm, formerly known as CCMP Capital Asia
* ''Humani generis unitas'', a planned ency ...
exercises with Latin American navies. The squadron also coordinated missile shoots and provided search and rescue support for Space Shuttle
The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program na ...
launches.
1990s
Its most important contribution was with the tracking and interdiction Interdiction is a military term for the act of delaying, disrupting, or destroying enemy forces or supplies en route to the battle area. A distinction is often made between strategic and tactical interdiction. The former refers to operations whose e ...
of drug running
The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs throug ...
aircraft and vessels in the Caribbean area starting in the 1990s . In 1999, after Hurricane Floyd
Hurricane Floyd was a very powerful Cape Verde hurricane which struck the Bahamas and the East Coast of the United States. It was the sixth named storm, fourth hurricane, and third major hurricane in the 1999 Atlantic hurricane season. Floyd tr ...
struck the U.S. East Coast
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, the Atlantic Coast, and the Atlantic Seaboard, is the coastline along which the Eastern United States meets the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The eastern seaboard ...
, the squadron provided air control for federal, state, and local aircraft bringing relief to 20,000 flooded residents.
2000s
VAW-78 was set to be deactivated March 31, 2005. Before being deactivated, VAW-78 transferred some of its aircraft toVAW-77
Carrier Airborne Early Warning Squadron 77 (VAW-77) "Nightwolves" was an aviation unit of the United States Navy Reserve based at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base New Orleans from 1995 to 2013. It comprised the U.S. Navy's only fully dedicated ...
to replace older E-2Cs in that squadron.
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
External links
VAW-78 Global security website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaw-78 Early warning squadrons of the United States Navy