Sea Control Squadron 35 (VS-35), known as the ''Boomerangers'' was an anti-submarine/surface squadron of the
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 ...
. Established on 3 January 1961, at
Naval Air Station Los Alamitos
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It inc ...
, California, it was disestablished on 30 June 1973.
History
![Grumman S-2D Tracker of VS-35 in flight c1966](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/Grumman_S-2D_Tracker_of_VS-35_in_flight_c1966.jpg)
On establishment the squadron was equipped with eleven
S2F-1 Tracker aircraft. In July 1961, the squadron transition to the S2F-3, which would later be designated the S-2D. In 1962, the squadron was relocated to NAS North Island, California, and deployed for the first time as part of Carrier Anti-Submarine Air Group Fifty-Seven (CVSG-57) on board the and again in 1963.
From August 1965 to March 1966, the squadron again deployed aboard the USS ''Hornet'' for combat operations in Vietnam. The Boomerangers maintained surface and subsurface surveillance in the
Gulf of Tonkin
The Gulf of Tonkin is a gulf at the northwestern portion of the South China Sea, located off the coasts of Tonkin (northern Vietnam) and South China. It has a total surface area of . It is defined in the west and northwest by the northern ...
. Later that year, they assisted the ''Hornet'' in the recovery of the first
Apollo capsule. The squadron's fourth and fifth deployments in 1967 and 1968–1969 saw them return to the Gulf of Tonkin for combat operations.
After their fifth deployment, the USS ''Hornet'' was decommissioned and VS-35 was reassigned as part of CVSG-53 and in May 1970 deployed in the Atlantic on the . On 17 May 1972, VS-35 deployed with CVSG-53 on board the to the Pacific and participated in the
Operation Pocket Money
Operation Pocket Money was the title of a U.S. Navy Task Force 77 aerial mining campaign conducted against the Democratic Republic of Vietnam (North Vietnam) from 9 May 1972 (Vietnamese time), during the Vietnam War. Its purpose was to halt or s ...
, the mining of Haiphong Harbor in North Vietnam. In May 1973, due to impending retirement of the Grumman Tracker, VS-35 was decommissioned on June 30, 1973.
A plan to reestablish a second VS-35 occurred in October 1976 to fly the S-3A Viking. This however was stopped due to fiscal constraints and in 1977, the second VS-35 was disestablished.
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 ...
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List of United States Navy aircraft squadrons
This is a list of active United States Navy aircraft squadrons. ''Deactivated'' or ''disestablished'' squadrons are listed in the List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons.
Navy aircraft squadron (aviation), squadrons are composed of ...
References
GlobalSecurity: VS-35
{{US Navy navbox
Military units and formations in California
Sea control squadrons of the United States Navy