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TWO ZERO EIGHT VAK-208 "JOCKEYS" When the Naval Air Reserve was reorganized in 1970 Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron 208 was commissioned on July 31 at NAS Alameda, California, as part of Carrier Air Wing Twenty. Equipped with KA-3Bs to support CVWR-20 operations, VAQ-208 also began providing air refueling and path finding for Navy and Marine tactical aircraft being ferried to Southeast Asia. During the 1971 India-Pakistan conflict and the 1973 Yom Kippur War, VAQ-208 jointly with VAQ-308 provided crews and aircraft to support emergency deployments of U.S. naval aircraft.. During the seventies, the squadron also provided tanking platforms for test and development of the Lockheed S-3A Viking and Grumman F-14A Tomcat. On October 1, 1979, in recognition of its primary use as a refueling and path finding unit, the squadron was redesignated VAK-208. Still assigned to CVWR-20, it operates worldwide from NAS Alameda. |
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THREE ZERO EIGHT VAK-308 "GRIFFINS" As a result of the overhaul of the Naval Air Reserve, at NAS Alameda, California on May 2, 1970, VAQ-308, under the command of CDR Gregory Bambo Jr., was the first squadron of the first reserve Carrier Air Group to be commissioned. Comprised of a unique complement of civilian reservists and active duty personnel, VAQ-308 was assigned KA-3B’s. At 0750, November 10, 1970, VAQ-308’s Skywarrior, made the first arrested landing for the newly formed Carrier Air Group 30. The landing was made during low ceilings and 14 foot seas aboard USS TICONDERGA (CVS-14) while cruising approximately 100 miles southwest of San Clemente Island. Never before had non-active duty reservists been day and night carrier qualified! This was the first A3 Skywarrior and the first Heavy Attack Squadron ever assigned to the Naval Air Reserve. VAQ-308 along with its later formed sister squadron, VAQ-208, established a new precedence by flying combat support missions in S.E. Asia during the Vietnam War with civilian reservists (not recalled to Active Duty) during short leaves of absence from their civilian occupations. The squadron supported peacetime as well as critical emergency deployments to the Indian Ocean (e.g., during the India-Pakistan conflict in 1971 and the transfer of aircraft to Israel during the Yom Kippur War in 1973). The AERREFRON designation was adopted on October 1, 1979, thus making VAK-308 and VAK-208 the only Navy units ever to have been given air refueling as their primary mission. After adding over 19 years to the "Whale’s" already long operational tenure, VAK-308 was decommissioned at NAS Alameda on September 30, 1989. |
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ONE ZERO TWO ZERO VAQ-1020 During the 1970s, the Navy Reserve had more A-3 aircrewmen than they had squadrons or airplanes in which to fill. So it was decided to form a couple of non-hardware squadrons at Alameda in which to stash these people and keep them current in type. VAQ-1020 was one of two of these stepchildren who had a full chain of command including a CO, XO and on down the line, all of which where aircrew. There were no A-3s aircraft assigned to them though. They drilled on the weekends and flew VAQ-208's and 308's A-3 Skywarriors. |