Four distinct U.S. Navy squadrons have been designated VF-151. The
first VF-151 was established, and then disestablished, in 1945. The second was established at VF-153 in 1945 and eventually became
VFA-192. The
third squadron was originally established as VF-65 in 1951 and was eventually disestablished as VA-23 in 1970. The fourth squadron to be designated VF-151 was established as VF-23 in 1948, eventually became VFA-151, and is the main subject of this article.
1940s on the deck of
Strike Fighter Squadron 151 (VFA-151) was originally established as Fighter Squadron 23 (VF-23) at
Naval Air Station Oceana,
Virginia on 6 August 1948. The squadron was attached to Air Group Two aboard and flew the
F4U-5 Corsair and
F6F-5P Hellcat. By April 1949, the squadron flew the F4U-4 Corsair exclusively, embarking with that aircraft for a
Mediterranean Sea deployment from May–December 1949.
1950s hits the barrier aboard |left In August 1950, the squadron moved to
NAS Alameda, California, and then deployed for the first of three cruises in support of the
Korean War. On 15 September 1950, the squadron flew combat missions from in support of the
amphibious landings at Inchon, Korea. Upon their return to the US, the squadron relocated to
NAS Moffett Field in November 1950. The squadron transitioned to the jet age in Jan 1951, flying the straight-wing
F9F-2 Panther on their second Korea deployment from . During their third Korean War deployment, while flying from in August 1952, squadron aircraft participated in joint operations with the U.S. Air Force, striking targets in
Pyongyang and the surrounding area. The squadron transitioned to the
F2H-3 Banshee in March 1953 and adopted a new role as an all-weather fighter squadron. In March 1954, the squadron was deployed to the western Pacific aboard USS
Essex when the carrier was ordered to operate off the coast of
Vietnam during the
Battle of Dien Bien Phu. In December 1956, VF-23 transitioned to the
F4D-1 Skyray, and in August and September 1958, the squadron flew sorties from in the
Taiwan Straits after the
Chinese Communists bombarded Quemoy Island. VF-23 deployed to the WestPac aboard USS
Hancock in 1958 and again 1959. The squadron, now known as the
Vigilantes, transitioned to the
F3H-2 Demon in January 1959. A month later, the squadron was redesignated
Fighter Squadron One Fifty One (VF-151) on 23 February 1959 and assigned to Carrier Air Group 15.
1960s In July 1961, the squadron moved homeport to
NAS Miramar and made the first of three WestPac deployments aboard . In January 1964, the squadron transitioned to the
F-4B Phantom and deployed for its first
Vietnam War cruise on 7 December 1964. During the eleven month combat deployment, the squadron flew nearly 1500 combat sorties, including support of the 1965
Operation Rolling Thunder bombing campaign against military targets in North Vietnam. The squadron returned to Southeast Asia on their second Vietnam deployment in May 1966 aboard . refueling over the Gulf of Tonkin, in 1966.|left The squadron made its third deployment of the war aboard USS
Coral Sea from July 1967 to April 1968. On 24 October 1967 the squadron's commanding officer, CDR C.R. Gillespie, and his
Radar Intercept Officer, LTJG R.C. Clark, were shot down by a surface-to-air missile over North Vietnam. CDR Gillespie became a
prisoner of war and was not released until May 1973, while LTJG Clark died in captivity.In March 1968, USS
Coral Sea, with VF-151 embarked, operated on station off the coast of Korea following the capture of by North Korea. The squadron deployed again in September 1968 with
Carrier Air Wing 15 (CVW-15) aboard USS
Coral Sea again following a short turn-around period. The squadron made its fifth combat deployment of the war in September 1969 aboard USS
Coral Sea and flew more than 2100 combat sorties, more than any other Navy squadron in FY1970.
1970s The squadron deployed on its sixth combat cruise of the war in April 1971 with Carrier Air Wing 5 (CVW-5) aboard , flying 1012 combat sorties. In April 1972, the squadron deployed on its seventh and final deployment of the Vietnam War. During this deployment, the squadron spent 205 continuous days in combat flight operations, including support of
Operation Linebacker, the bombing campaign designed to disrupt supplies to the North Vietnamese. The squadron's 205 days of continuous combat flight operations was the longest period of combat flight operations in the history of the Vietnam War. From 1965 to 1973, the squadron participated in every major operation of the Vietnam War, made more combat deployments (7) and spent more time on the line (927 days) than any other carrier based unit – including the longest deployment of the Vietnam War (331 days on USS
Coral Sea) and the longest line period of the Vietnam War (208 days on USS
Midway). [http://www.lemoore.navy.mil/vfa-151/History.htm The squadron returned to San Francisco, California from Vietnam in March 1973 and transitioned to the F-4N. On 11 September 1973, USS
Midway with VF-151 aboard, departed the US for the last time for many years to come. The ship arrived at its new port of
United States Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan and the squadron at its new home of
NAF Atsugi, Japan on 5 October. The ship was met by a group of Japanese demonstrators, railing against the home porting of a US "Man-of-War" in Japanese waters.On 1 April 1975, the squadron departed NAF Atsugi and headed for the South China Sea for what would ultimately be called
Operation Frequent Wind, the evacuation of US personnel from
Saigon as the country fell to the North Vietnamese. The ship took aboard Marine helicopters as it passed Okinawa and offloaded them when in the vicinity of
Naval Air Station Cubi Point in the Philippines. The ship then headed for the coast of Vietnam and the squadrons flew Combat Air Patrols as the North Vietnamese moved quickly through South Vietnam. From August to September 1976, the squadron conducted flight operations near the Korean Peninsula following the
Axe-murder Incident. In August 1977, the squadron transitioned to the F-4J. In 1978 the squadron was named the top TACAIR squadron in CVW-5 and received the Chief of Naval Operations Safety "S" award. The squadron made three Indian Ocean deployments between 1979 and 1980. During 1979 USS
Midway, with VF-151 embarked, deployed to the
Gulf of Aden following the outbreak of fighting between North and South
Yemen and the
Iranian Revolution. During the 1980 deployment following the
Iranian seizure of the American Embassy in
Teheran, USS
Midway, with VF- 151 embarked, proceeded to the
Gulf of Oman and remained on station until relieved in early February 1980.
1980s In December 1980, the squadron transitioned to the F-4S. On 24 March 1986, the squadron flew off USS
Midway for the last time as VF-151. This event also marked the end of an era, as it was the last flight of the F-4 Phantom II from the deck of an aircraft carrier. The squadron reported to
NAS Lemoore, California for transition to the new
F/A-18A Hornet. VF-151 was one of only two F-4 fighter squadrons to transition to the F/A-18A and be redesignated a strike fighter squadron. The squadron was re-designated
Strike Fighter Squadron 151 (VFA-151) on 1 June 1986. In November of that year, the squadron returned to USS
Midway and NAF Atsugi. In September 1988 during the
1988 Summer Olympics in
Seoul,
South Korea, the squadron was embarked on USS
Midway and operating in the
Sea of Japan to demonstrate U.S. support for a peaceful Olympics. In December 1989, USS
Midway, with VFA-151 embarked, maintained station off the coast of the
Philippines during an
attempted coup in that country.
1990s VFA-151 deployed aboard USS
Midway in October 1990 in support of
Operation Desert Shield. Hostilities escalated in Iraq, and on 17 January 1991 the squadron participated in the initial air strikes of
Operation Desert Storm. During the campaign, the squadron dropped more than 817,000 pounds of ordnance on key targets in Iraq, Kuwait, and the Northern Persian Gulf. In August 1991, the squadron left Japan aboard USS
Midway bound for
NS Pearl Harbor, Hawaii on the USS
Midways last underway period. VFA-151 then transferred to
CVW-2, and moved to NAS Lemoore, California. In February 1993, the squadron transitioned their aircraft to upgraded Lot 15 F/A-18C Hornets. In May 1993, the squadron embarked on USS
Constellation and travelled from the East Coast around
Cape Horn South America to her new homeport in San Diego, California. The squadron contributed to the enforcement of "no-fly" zones over southern Iraq during combat-zone WestPac deployments in support of
Operation Southern Watch in 1994–1995. Additional WESTPAC deployments in support of Operation Southern Watch continued on-board USS
Constellation in 1997 and 1999.
2000s The squadron was the recipient of Strike Fighter Wing Pacific's Battle "E" award for CY2000 and deployed on USS
Constellation again in 2001. The squadron deployed for its final deployment aboard USS
Constellation in November 2002. Following a successful combat deployment, USS
Constellation was decommissioned in San Diego, California 7 August 2003. VFA-151, along with CVW-2, moved to . In October 2004, the squadron deployed on its first WESTPAC/Surge in support of the US Navy's new Fleet Response Plan. While deployed, the squadron participated in
Operation Unified Assistance, the humanitarian relief effort to assist survivors of the
tsunami that struck Southeast Asia on 26 December 2004. Between 24–31 March 2006, during
Foal Eagle 2006 exercises, squadrons
VFA-2,
VFA-34,
VFA-137, and VFA-151 from CVW-2 teamed with U.S. Air Force aircraft from the
18th Wing based at
Kadena Air Base to provide combat air patrols and coordinated bombing runs via the exercise's Combined Air Operations Center. lands aboard in 2008In 2008 VFA-151 deployed again on board the USS
Abraham Lincoln in the
Fifth Fleet Area of Responsibility (AOR) which upon returning they again received the Battle "E" for the year of 2008.
2010s The squadron deployed again aboard USS
Abraham Lincoln in support of Operation New Dawn and
Operation Enduring Freedom in the Fifth Fleet AOR from October 2010 to March 2011. The squadron was awarded the Battle "E" for the year of 2010 as well as the
Michael J. Estocin award. In December 2011 the squadron was deployed again in support of
Operation Enduring Freedom in the Fifth Fleet AOR for a five-month "surge" deployment. After extending twice, the squadron returned home in August 2012. After five months flying the F/A-18C post-deployment, VFA-151 began transitioning to Lot 35/36
F/A-18E Super Hornets in February 2013. With the transition, the squadron left CVW-2 and moved to
CVW-9 attached to on 1 June 2013. August 2019 the Squadron lost an F/A-18E Super Hornet flown out of NAS Lemoore, it crashed into the wall of what is known as "Star Wars Canyon", near Naval Air Weapons Station at China Lake. The aviator did not survive.
2020s In late Feb 2026, as part of CVW-9, VFA-151 and their F/A-18Es operating off the USS Abraham Lincoln, undertook combat sorties within Operation Epic Fury against Iran. ==Awards==