Strike Fighter Squadron 122 (VFA-122), also known as the "Flying Eagles", are a

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 ...

F/A-18E/F Super Hornet and

F/A-18 Hornet The McDonnell Douglas F/A-18 Hornet is an all-weather, twinjet, twin-engine, supersonic aircraft, supersonic, carrier-based aircraft, carrier-capable, Multirole combat aircraft, multirole combat aircraft, designed as both a Fighter aircraft, ...

Fleet Replacement Squadron stationed at Naval Air Station Lemoore.

History

There have been two distinct Navy squadrons known as the "Flying Eagles". The

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

was established in 1950 as VC-35, later redesignated VA(AW)-35, and then VA-122 and was disestablished in May 1991. Often, the new squadron will assume the nickname, insignia, and traditions of the earlier squadrons, but officially, the US Navy does not recognize a direct lineage with decommissioned squadrons if a new squadron is formed with the same designation. In January 1999 a new ''Flying Eagles'' squadron was established as Strike Fighter Squadron 122 (VFA-122), the first squadron to operate the F/A-18E/F Super Hornet. On 1 October 2010 VFA-125 (the "legacy" F/A-18 Hornet FRS also stationed at NAS Lemoore) was deactivated and the squadron's aircraft and personnel were absorbed into VFA-122. The merger was intended to cut administrative costs and streamline production in anticipation of the "legacy" F/A-18 Hornet being phased out by the Super Hornet and F-35 Lightning II in the coming years. The merged squadron retained the Flying Eagles insignia and the ''Rough Raiders'' of VFA-125 were deactivated.

Mission

As the West Coast Hornet and Super Hornet Fleet Replacement Squadron, the squadron's mission is to train Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18A/B/C/D/E/F Replacement Pilots and Weapon Systems Officers (WSOs) to support fleet commitments. Every 6 weeks a class of between 8–12 newly winged Navy pilots and Naval Flight Officers begins the 9-month training course in which they learn the basics of air-to-air and air-to-ground missions, culminating in day/night carrier qualification and subsequent assignment to fleet Hornet squadrons. VFA-122's East Coast counterpart is VFA-106 at NAS Oceana. Aircrew returning from non-flying assignments undergo refresher training at VFA-122 prior to returning to the fleet. Additionally, VFA-122 (with the help from the Center of Naval Aviation Technical Training Unit: CNATTTU) trains maintenance personnel and provides replacement aircraft to fleet units. VFA-122 currently has approximately 225 officers, 408 enlisted personnel and operates over 60 aircraft. The squadron often detaches aircraft to Naval Air Station Fallon,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...

and Naval Air Facility El Centro,

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

, as well as various aircraft carriers for carrier qualifications (CQ).

Significant Mishaps

On 6 April 2011, squadron pilot Matthew I. Lowe, 33, and weapons systems officer Nathan H. Williams, 26, were killed when their F/A-18 crashed half a mile from NAS Lemoore on a routine training mission.

Trivia

In 2011, in honor of the Centennial of Naval Aviation, the F/A18F Super Hornet BuNo 165677 was painted in a unique "digital camo" look.

References

External links

VFA-122 Flying Eagles Home Page

VFA-122 Make the Grade
- ''Naval Aviation News'' (July–August 2003)
F/A-18F 165677/NJ-100 VFA-122 - NAS North Island, 100 Years of Naval Aviation