Fighting Squadron 72 or VF-72 was an aviation unit of the
U.S. Navy, originally established as VF-7 on 1 July 1939, it was redesignated as VF-72 on 19 November 1940 and disestablished on 29 March 1943.
Operational history
VF-7 was originally equipped with
Grumman F2F and
Grumman F3F aircraft. It was reequipped with the
F4F-3 Wildcat in December 1940 and deployed as part of
Carrier Air Group 7 (CVG-7) aboard the .
From January to March 1942 VF-72 was deployed on in the Atlantic Fleet. In April 1942, VF-72 was based ashore at
Naval Station Norfolk and then transferred to the USS ''Wasp''. In early June 1942, VF-72 had reequipped with the F4F-4 at
NAS Alameda and from mid-June through July was shore-based at
Naval Station Pearl Harbor
Naval Station Pearl Harbor is a United States naval base on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. In 2010, along with the United States Air Force's Hickam Air Force Base, the facility was merged to form Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam. Pearl Harbor is ...
. In August VF-72 was deployed on .
Artist
Thomas C. Lea III
Thomas Calloway Lea III (July 11, 1907 – January 29, 2001) was an American muralist, illustrator, artist, war correspondent, novelist, and historian. The bulk of his art and literary works were about Texas, north-central Mexico, and his World ...
depicted VF-72's executive officer, Lt A. C. “Silver” Emerson in action during the
Solomon Islands campaign in his painting "Defending the Ship."
Following the sinking of the on 26 October 1942, VF-72 was deployed on from January until March 1943 when it was disembarked at Pearl Harbour.
Home port assignments
*NAS Norfolk
*NAS Alameda
*Naval Station Pearl Harbor
Aircraft assignment
*
Grumman F2F-1
*
Grumman F3F-1
*
Grumman F4F-3 Wildcat
See also
*
List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons
*
History of the United States Navy
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vf-72
Aircraft squadrons of the United States Navy