VP-44 (1951-91)

Patrol Squadron 44
VP-44 insignia
Active	29 January 1951-28 June 1991
Country	United States of America
Branch	United States Navy
Type	squadron
Role	Maritime patrol
Nickname(s)	Golden Pelicans Budmen
Engagements	Korean War Vietnam War
Aircraft flown
Patrol	PBM-5 Mariner P5M-1 Marlin P-2 Neptune P-3 Orion

This VP-44 was a long-lived Patrol Squadron of the U.S. Navy. The squadron was established on 29 January 1951 at NAS Norfolk, Virginia and disestablished 40 years later, on 28 June 1991, at NAS Brunswick, Maine. Units of the squadron made 40 major overseas deployments. Its nickname was the Golden Pelicans from 1961-1991, and it was also known as the Budmen from 1989-1991. The squadron had four different insignia during its lifetime, featuring a marlin, King Neptune, a cartoon pelican, and, finally, a more formal pelican design.^[1] It was the fourth squadron to be designated VP-44, the first VP-44 was redesignated as VP-61 on 6 January 1941, the second VP-44 was redesignated VPB-44 on 1 October 1944 and the third VP-44 was disestablished on 20 January 1950.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Operational history

USS Greenwich Bay refuels a VP-44 Martin P5M-2 Marlin on 24 May 1955. Greenwich Bay is wearing the white paint of a Middle East Force flagship.

VP-44 P-3A flies over the Soviet ship Metallurg Anasov and destroyer USS Barry during the Cuban Missile Crisis

VP-44 P-3C flying past Mount Etna, Italy, in the 1980s.

29 January 1951: VP-44 was established at Breezy Point, NAS Norfolk, Va., as a seaplane squadron equipped with nine Martin PBM-5 Mariners, under the operational control of FAW-5. Upon arrival, new aircrews were sent to NAS Corpus Christi, Texas, for flight training.
May–August 1951: VP-44 deployed to Naval Air Station Bermuda to fly patrol and convoy flights during Convex Two fleet exercises. When the exercises concluded in June, the squadron proceeded to San Juan, Puerto Rico, where it received seaplane tender support from USS Timbalier. A detachment of six aircraft was maintained at Naval Station Argentia, Newfoundland, through August 1951, when the squadron returned to NAS Norfolk, Va.
January–March 1952: VP-44 deployed to Bermuda for advanced base operations. During the deployment crews were sent to Baltimore, Md., for training on the P5M-1 Marlin. In March, a detachment was sent to Cuba for operations supported by USS Duxbury Bay. The squadron returned to NAS Norfolk in March 1952.
23 April 1952: VP-44 received its first P5M-1 Marlin, becoming the first squadron to operate the aircraft. It had a better turning circle, newer antisubmarine warfare (ASW) and radar equipment, sturdier hull design, and more powerful engines than the PBM series.
13 July 1953: The squadron experienced its first casualties when Crew 10 crashed at sea after developing engine trouble. Seven out of the aircraft’s eleven crewmembers were lost in the crash.
15 July–September 1954: VP-44 deployed to Pembroke Dock, Wales, for 15 days of operations supported by USS Currituck. The squadron departed Britain for the Mediterranean Sea in early August. After visiting numerous ports in the Mediterranean the squadron returned to NAS Norfolk on 6 September 1954. This deployment marked the first occasion that the P5M Marlin had been flown “across the pond” to Europe.
January–June 1955: VP-44 received the first of its new T-tail P5M-2 Marlins, so named due to the placement of the horizontal stabilizer at the top of the vertical tailplane instead of the base as in earlier models. In addition to improved power and endurance, the new aircraft were supplied with magnetic anomaly detection (MAD) gear to round out the electronic capabilities of the squadron. The squadron received its full complement of aircraft by 1 June.
February 1955: VP-44 conducted experiments in refueling from a submarine while underway. The tests, in which a specially equipped P5M-1 was towed by a moving submarine tanker, were judged highly successful.
February 1955: VP-44 made nationwide television news when the media learned that the squadron had been alerted to investigate a submarine contact off Nags Head, N.C. The sighting stirred public fears generated by the developing Cold War. The 30-minute response from the squadron in getting airborne and its 24-hour readiness made a positive impression on the public. The initial contact was made by a VP-44 P5M during a training flight about 50-100 miles off the Virginia coast. The sub was running with its snorkel exposed while moving slowly north. It was immediately reported to VP-44 base . Other VP-44 aircraft were sent to track the sub as it moved north. When it moved out of the area other east coast squadrons continued the track. The sub reportedly disappeared somewhere off New England.
7–11 May 1956: Four P5Ms formed a test detachment to operate in open sea using a submarine as a floating base. The Marlins refueled from the tanker submarine USS Guavina off Dry Tortugas Island, Key West, and Tampa, Florida. The exercise was designed to give seaplanes mobility in areas where bases were not established, and to allow the squadron’s tender to stay submerged to avoid enemy detection. Guavina carried aviation fuel in her stern tanks, berthed the aircrews on board, fed them, provided logistical support, and carried a limited supply of spare parts and ordnance.
1 May 1959: Under the terms of the still existing lend-lease agreement, the French Navy was leased a full squadron of ten P5M Marlins. VP-44 was tasked with training the officers and enlisted personnel at NAS Norfolk. Upon completion of their training, the French Maritime Patrol Squadron flew to their home base at Dakar, West Africa.
13 February 1960: Lieutenant R.W. Myers and crew were forced to make an emergency landing in the open sea 360 miles out from San Juan, Puerto Rico, when the starboard engine of their P5M-2, LM-8, caught fire. The crew extinguished the fire and Lieutenant Myers began taxiing the aircraft toward the nearest land, Grand Turk Island, Bahamas, some 200 miles away. USS Abbot followed the plane during the 23-hour taxi. At Grand Turk Island the tender USS Albemarle refueled the plane and then sailed with her as the plane taxied at 10 knots on its one good engine to Guantanamo Bay Naval Base, Cuba. The seaplane taxied about 520 miles in two and one-half days, setting a world record for open sea taxiing.
December 1960: VP-44 began to transition from the P5M to the P-2V Neptune, a land-based aircraft. Crews were given training at NAS Jacksonville, Florida, with the squadron becoming operational in April 1961.
4 October 1961: VP-44 deployed to NAS Sigonella, Sicily, where it participated in numerous fleet exercises in the Mediterranean Sea and Project Mercury in the Atlantic.
1 April–13 August 1962: VP-44 received a change of permanent duty station when it was designated the second Atlantic Fleet patrol squadron to receive the P3V-1 (later redesignated the P-3A). The squadron moved from NAS Norfolk to NAS Patuxent River, Maryland. VP-44 received the first new P3V aircraft on 13 August. The squadron was declared operational in October.
20 October 1962: Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara called for a buildup of active duty and reserve units in support of potential operations against Cuba. He later stated that “what was important in connection with the Cuban crisis was patrol aircraft. We had to locate and we didn’t know the location of every Soviet ship moving toward the Western Hemisphere. It was a tremendous operation. It required both Air Force aircraft and Navy aircraft to do it. We were short of each”. VP-44 achieved international recognition of sorts when aircraft LM-4 was photographed flying close surveillance over the Russian freighter Anasov during the return of Soviet missiles to the USSR. Anasov was the only Russian vessel refusing to uncover all of the missiles lashed to the deck. VP-44 aircraft verified that eight large oblong objects, which appeared to be missiles, were located on its deck and the ship was allowed to proceed.
27 May 1968: VP-44 were among the patrol squadrons and other naval units called upon to assist in the search for the ill-fated USS Scorpion, last heard from on 21 May, 50 miles south of the Azores. The futile search was called off on 5 June.
10 July 1970: VP-44 received a change of permanent duty station relocating them from NAS Patuxent River to NAS Brunswick, Maine. The squadron then came under the operational control of FAW-3. Within a year FAW-3 at NAS Brunswick was disestablished and FAW-5 was moved from NAS Norfolk to NAS Brunswick, comprising the patrol squadrons stationed at that location and NAS Patuxent River.
15 July 1970: The squadron was tasked with a split deployment to Naval Station Rota, Spain, with the remaining portion at NAS Brunswick settling into its new home. During the deployment VP-44 was called upon to provide support to the fleet during the Black September in Jordan, resulting in the remainder of the squadron being ordered to NS Rota to augment 6th Fleet forces. The squadron’s efforts earned its first Meritorious Unit Citation.
24 February–May 1971: VP-44 relieved VP-8 at NAS Bermuda]], with a detachment of four aircraft and four aircrews based at Naval Station Roosevelt Roads, Puerto Rico. On 22 April, VP-44 sent a detachment of three aircraft and four aircrews to NAS Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, to maintain 24-hour surveillance on the coast of Haiti after the death of President Francois Duvalier. On 29 April, the detachment was relocated to NS Roosevelt Roads, and reduced to night coverage only. The detachment concluded operations on 6 May and returned to NAS Bermuda.
18 April–June 1972: VP-44 conducted a split deployment to NAS Bermuda and NAF Lajes, Azores, relieving VP-45. Additional detachments were temporarily based as needed at Soudha Bay, Crete, for work with the fleet in the Mediterranean Sea. On 3 June, aircraft BuNo 152182 from the Rota Detachment crashed into the mountainous terrain near Jesbel Musa, Morocco. All 14 crewmen were killed. No cause for the crash could be determined.
12 November 1974: VP-44 deployed to NAF Rota, Spain, relieving VP-23. A detachment was maintained at Lajes, Azores. The squadron’s success at ASW operations for the period earned it a second Meritorious Unit Citation.
3 September 1980: VP-44 deployed to NAF Kadena, Okinawa. The squadron operated throughout the western Pacific and Indian oceans providing the first Harpoon-capable aircraft for battle group support.
19 June–13 July 1985: VP-44 had begun the customary predeployment stand down period to allow squadron members time to spend with their families. The Soviets chose this time to conduct a summer exercise in the western Atlantic, involving a dozen nuclear ballistic and guided missile submarines, the largest ASW exercise in the Atlantic since the end of WWII. Navy patrol squadrons on the East Coast went into round-the-clock operations. As the exercise gradually wound down, VP-44 returned to their base to prepare for the coming deployment. On 13 July 1985, the squadron deployed to Rota, Spain, and Lajes, Azores, conducting tracking exercises with the fleet.
10 November 1986: VP-44 deployed to Naval Air Station Keflavik, Iceland, relieving VP-8. The squadron's new AN/APS-137 radar was used for the first time under operational conditions.
28 June 1991: VP-44 was disestablished at NAS Brunswick, Maine.^[1]

Home port assignments

The squadron was assigned to these home ports, effective on the dates shown:^[1]

NAS Norfolk, Virginia – 29 January 1951
NAS Patuxent River, Maryland – 1 April 1962
NAS Brunswick, Maine – 10 July 1970

Aircraft Assignment

The squadron first received the following aircraft on the dates shown:^[1]

PBM-5 Mariner – January 1951
P5M-1 Marlin – April 1952
P5M-2 Marlin – January 1955
P2V-3 Neptune – December 1960
P3V-1/P-3A Orion – August 1962
P-3C UII Orion – May 1978

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons.

1 2 3 4 Roberts, Michael D. (2000). Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons, Volume 2, Chapter 3, Section 8: Patrol Squadron Histories for 2nd VP-30 to 3rd VP-45 (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. pp. 246–252. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
↑ Roberts, Michael D. (2000). Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons, Volume 2, Chapter 4, Section 6: Patrol Bombing Squadron Histories for VPB-121 to VPB-141 (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. pp. 546–552. Retrieved 2014-02-27.
↑ Roberts, Michael D. (2000). Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons, Volume 2, Chapter 4, Section 3: Patrol Bombing Squadron Histories for VPB-33 to VPB-54 (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. pp. 462–466. Retrieved 2014-02-27.
↑ Roberts, Michael D. (2000). Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons, Volume 2, Appendix 7: Lineage Listings for Patrol Squadrons (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. p. 772. Retrieved 2014-02-27.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Patrol Squadron 44 (United States Navy).

United States Navy

Portal
Category

Leadership

Structure

Operating forces	Fleet Forces Command Pacific Fleet Naval Forces Europe Naval Forces Central Command Naval Forces Southern Command Naval Special Warfare Command Naval Reserve Forces Operational Test and Evaluation Force Naval Network Warfare Command Military Sealift Command

Shore	Naval Sea Systems Command Naval Air Systems Command Naval Facilities Engineering Command Naval Supply Systems Command Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command Fleet Cyber Command Naval Academy Naval Education and Training Command Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command Office of Naval Intelligence Naval Strike and Air Warfare Center Naval Legal Service Command Naval Observatory Navy Occupational Safety & Health Bureau of Naval Personnel Chief of Naval Personnel Bureau of Medicine and Surgery Navy Installations Command

Fleets	Third Fleet Fourth Fleet Fifth Fleet Sixth Fleet Seventh Fleet Tenth Fleet

Ships	A–B C D–F G–H I–K L M N–O P Q–R S T–V W–Z Aircraft carriers Airships Amphibious warfare ships Auxiliaries Battleships Cruisers Destroyers Destroyer escorts Escort carriers Frigates Mine warfare vessels Monitors Patrol vessels Sailing frigates Steam frigates Steam gunboats Ships of the line Sloops of war Submarines Torpedo boats

Personnel and
training

People

Officers	Insignia Designators

Enlisted	Rates Ratings Classification

Personnel

Chaplain Corps

Chief

United States Navy EOD

Medical Corps

Dental Corps

Nurse Corps

Medical Service Corps

JAG

Training

United States Naval Academy

Officer Candidate School

AIM

Naval Chaplaincy School

Naval Hospital Corps School

Naval Justice School

Naval Postgraduate School

United States Armed Forces School of Music

Navy Senior Enlisted Academy

Navy Supply Corps School

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences

Equipment

History and
traditions

United States Navy Aircraft Squadrons

Book
Category:Aircraft squadrons of the United States Navy

Electronic Attack (VAQ)

Carrier Airborne Early Warning (VAW)

Strike Fighter (VFA)

Fleet Air Reconnaissance (VQ)

Fleet Fighter Composite (VFC)

Fleet Logistics Support (VR)

Carrier Fleet Logistics Support (VRC)

Patrol

VP	1 4 5 8 9 10 16 22 23 24 26 30 40 41 42 43 45 46 47 60 62 64 65 66 67 68 69 90 91 92 93

VPU	1 2

Unmanned (VUP)

Training (VT)

Helicopter Mine Countermeasures (HM)

Helicopter Anti-Submarine Light (HSL)

Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC)

Helicopter Maritime Strike (HSM)

Helicopter Training (HT)

Cold War

USA USSR ANZUS NATO Non-Aligned Movement SEATO Warsaw Pact

1940s	Hukbalahap Rebellion Dekemvriana Yalta Conference Guerrilla war in the Baltic states Forest Brothers Operation Priboi Operation Jungle Occupation of the Baltic states Cursed Soldiers Operation Unthinkable Potsdam Conference Gouzenko Affair Operation Masterdom Operation Beleaguer Operation Blacklist Forty Iran crisis of 1946 Greek Civil War Corfu Channel incident Turkish Straits crisis Restatement of Policy on Germany First Indochina War Truman Doctrine Asian Relations Conference Marshall Plan 1948 Czechoslovak coup d'état Tito–Stalin Split Berlin Blockade Western betrayal Iron Curtain Eastern Bloc Western Bloc Chinese Civil War (Second round) Malayan Emergency Albanian Subversion

1950s	Bamboo Curtain Korean War 1953 Iranian coup d'état Uprising of 1953 in East Germany 1954 Guatemalan coup d'état Partition of Vietnam First Taiwan Strait Crisis Geneva Summit (1955) Poznań 1956 protests Hungarian Revolution of 1956 Suez Crisis Syrian Crisis of 1957 Sputnik crisis Second Taiwan Strait Crisis Cuban Revolution Kitchen Debate Bandung Conference Bricker Amendment McCarthyism Operation Gladio Iraqi July Revolution "We will bury you"

1960s	Congo Crisis Sino-Soviet split 1960 U-2 incident Bay of Pigs Invasion 1960 Turkish coup d'état Soviet–Albanian split Berlin Wall Portuguese Colonial War Angolan War of Independence Guinea-Bissau War of Independence Mozambican War of Independence Cuban Missile Crisis Sino-Indian War Communist insurgency in Sarawak Iraqi Ramadan Revolution 1963 Syrian coup d'état Vietnam War 1964 Brazilian coup d'état United States occupation of the Dominican Republic (1965–66) South African Border War Transition to the New Order Domino theory ASEAN Declaration Laotian Civil War 1966 Syrian coup d'état Argentine Revolution Korean DMZ Conflict Greek military junta of 1967–74 USS Pueblo incident Six-Day War War of Attrition Cultural Revolution Prague Spring Communist insurgency in Malaysia Invasion of Czechoslovakia Iraqi Ba'athist Revolution Goulash Communism Sino-Soviet border conflict CPP-NPA-NDF rebellion Corrective Move

1970s	Détente Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Black September in Jordan Corrective Movement (Syria) Cambodian Civil War Realpolitik Ping-pong diplomacy 1971 Turkish military memorandum Corrective Revolution (Egypt) Four Power Agreement on Berlin Bangladesh Liberation War 1972 Nixon visit to China North Yemen-South Yemen Border Conflict 1973 Chilean coup d'état Yom Kippur War Carnation Revolution Strategic Arms Limitation Talks Rhodesian Bush War Angolan Civil War Mozambican Civil War Ogaden War Ethiopian Civil War Lebanese Civil War Sino-Albanian split Cambodian–Vietnamese War Sino-Vietnamese War Iranian Revolution Operation Condor Dirty War Korean Air Lines Flight 902 Saur Revolution New Jewel Movement 1979 Herat uprising Seven Days to the River Rhine Struggle against political abuse of psychiatry in the Soviet Union

1980s	Soviet–Afghan War 1980 and 1984 Summer Olympics boycotts 1980 Turkish coup d'état Invasion of Grenada 1986 Black Sea incident 1988 Black Sea bumping incident Solidarity Soviet reaction Contras Central American crisis RYAN Korean Air Lines Flight 007 Able Archer 83 Star Wars People Power Revolution Nagorno-Karabakh War Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 Fall of the Berlin Wall Revolutions of 1989 Glasnost Perestroika

1990s	Mongolian Revolution of 1990 Yemeni unification Fall of Communism in Albania Breakup of Yugoslavia Dissolution of the Soviet Union Dissolution of Czechoslovakia

Frozen conflicts	Abkhazia China Korea Nagorno-Karabakh South Ossetia Transnistria Sino-Indian border dispute North Borneo dispute

Foreign policy	Truman Doctrine Marshall Plan Containment Eisenhower Doctrine Domino theory Hallstein Doctrine Kennedy Doctrine Peaceful coexistence Ostpolitik Johnson Doctrine Brezhnev Doctrine Nixon Doctrine Ulbricht Doctrine Carter Doctrine Reagan Doctrine Rollback Sovereignty of Puerto Rico during the Cold War

Ideologies	Capitalism Chicago school Keynesianism Monetarism Neoclassical economics Reaganomics Supply-side economics Thatcherism Communism Marxism–Leninism Castroism Eurocommunism Guevarism Hoxhaism Juche Maoism Naxalism Stalinism Titoism Liberal democracy Social democracy

Organizations	ASEAN CIA Comecon EEC KGB Non-Aligned Movement SAARC Safari Club MI6 Stasi

Propaganda	Active measures Izvestia Pravda Crusade for Freedom Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Red Scare TASS Voice of America Voice of Russia

Races	Arms race Nuclear arms race Space Race

See also	Brinkmanship NATO–Russia relations Soviet espionage in the United States Russian espionage in the United States American espionage in the Soviet Union Soviet Union–United States relations US–Soviet summits Cold War II

Category Portal Timeline List of conflicts

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 10/28/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.