Osprey - Aviation Elite Units - 036 - VF-11-111 - Sundowners 1942-95

I II.! Iud hy Ihcn become an arrack squadron flying A4D-2 kyh wk. pon rClurning to San Francisco Hancock began a year-long ov'rh.llIl. rClJuiring Ihe air group to seek a new home.

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FASTER THAN SOUND

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'Sundowner' officers pose in this 1963 photograph before the mount of USAF exchange pilot Capt G L Schulstab. Under skipper Charles E Ray, VF-111 adopted the sharksmouth emblem that would remain a squadron trademark through the Phantom II and Tomcat ras (via Tai/hook Association)

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In May 1961 VF-Il J received rhe Voughr F8U-2 Crusader. Ir was a milestone nor only in rhe 'Sundowners" history, bur in rhe progress of naval aviarion. As rhe firsr genuinely supersonic naval aircrafr, rhe Crusader joined a selecr circle of railhook fighrcrs rhar could ourperform mosr land-based opponenrs. Previously rhar honour had gone to rhe A6M Zero-sen, F4U Corsair and F6F Hellcar. Moreover, rhe Crusader's high rhrusr-ro-weighr rario enabled ir to fighr wirh irs nose above rhe horizon. Under Cdr Homer A Winrer, rhe squadron began exploring rhe sensarional Voughr's porenrial. Transirion to a Mach I fighrer called for a squadron mascor, and , undowner' enlisred men conceived a rriangular srick figure dubbed 'Omar'. oon, red renderings of 'Omar' appeared rhroughour squadron spaces, on VF-I I I aircrafr and in orher squadron areas - occasionally on orher squadron aircrafr roo. 'Omar' bespoke of excellenr morale, and remained a 'Sundowner' symbol for rhree decades. In addirion to flying rhe horresr aircrafr in rhe fleer - rhe F-4B Phanrom II was srill rhree years away - rhe 'Sundowners' found rhemselves comforrably aboard SS Kitty Hawk (CVA-63), rhe newesr carrier afloar. They flew ro rhe Easr Coasr, boarded rhe new 'flarrop'

and rode ir ro California wirh rh r I II qll dron, lor irs rwo-and-a-half-monrh shakedown rllis. h' '1JlIlin' III pI mh'r. rhe easr- ro-wesr excu rs ion perm irred 11.1111 il: and Caribbean, before rounding ape H rn 'n 1 lego. Since I Oil 18 Seprcmber, rhe rri-service aircrafr designarion sysrem I I , undowners' hisrorian Henk van del' ugr n r d rhal a pilor who launched in an F8 -2 landcd in an F-8D! Thlls b gan morc rhan a decade in 'The Lasr of rhe Gunfighrers'. When Kitty Hawk deployed from October J 963 ro July 1964, ir was rhe lasr rime rhar CA -II opcrarcd as a fully inregrared unir, in luding VA-112 and VA-113 wirh A-4Cs, VA-liS wirh A-I Hs and VF-114's Phantom lis. In December 1963 carrier air groups became carrier air wings ( VWs), alrhough rhe CAG (Commander Air Group) rerminology remained for Cdrs W H 0'[ eil and J Gambrill. However, ir was nor cerrain rhar VF-l1 J would make rhe Kitty Hawk cruise. Thar Seprember AG-2 was working up for a U S Midway (CVA-4 I) deploymenr when one of irs fighrer squadrons, VF-24, was rransferred ro anorher wing. Consequendy, VF-I I I was redesignared VF-26 as rhe sixrh squadron in CVW-2. The change was shorr-lived (roughly lasring jusr rhe firsr half of Seprember), bur reporredly some 'Sundowner' F-8Ds were seen wirh VF-26 and USS Midway riding on rheir srarboard sides, reraining VF-J II and USS Kitty Hawk markings ro porr. VF-I I I headed for WesrPac aboard CVA-63 rhe following monrh, however.

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'Alfa Hotel 107' nicely framed by a photographer from an A-3, probably from CAG-11's VAH-13. The date is December 1963 - the same month the US Navy changed air group designations to air wings (via Tail/wok Association)

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