| Patrol Squadron 24 | |
|---|---|
VP-24 |
|
| Active | April 10, 1943 - April 30, 1995 |
| Country | United States |
| Branch | United States Navy |
| Type | Anti-submarine warfare |
| Part of | Inactive |
| Nickname | "Batmen" "The Buccaneers" "Screaming 104" |
| Engagements | Pacific |
| Decorations | PUC 15 August 1943-19 March 1944, 6 Nov 1944-7 June 1945 |
| Disbanded | 1945 (renamed, disbanded as VP-24 in 1995) |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Bomber | PB4Y-1 Liberator |
| Electronic warfare |
P2V Neptune P-3C Orion |
VP-24, Patrol Squadron 24 was a United States Navy anti-submarine warfare squadron that flew the P-3 Orion. They were first established during World War II as VB-104[1] flying the PB4Y-1 Liberator in the Pacific Theater of Operations From April 1943 and October 1945. They were later redesignated VPB-104 on October 1, 1944. Later redesignations included VP-104 just after the war and VA-HM-13, returning to VP-24 before it was disestablished on April 30, 1995 as part of the post Cold War drawdown of forces.[2]
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The squadron was established April 10, 1943 at Naval Air Station Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii flying the four-engine PB4Y-1 Liberator with personnel from the VP-71[3] who had been flying a similar mission in the two-engine amphibious PBY Catalina. Flight operations began immediately and were eventually conducted from bases including Midway, Canton, Johnston Atoll, Guadalcanal, Munda, Morotai, Tacloban, and Clark Field.
Commander Harry E. Sears received the Navy Cross for heroic actions while leading the new squadron in the destruction of several enemy aircraft and ships. The squadron was relieved by VB-115 on March 29, 1944, and returned to the U.S. for rest and rehabilitation. By then the squadron was credited with the destruction of 30 enemy aircraft and 51 ships, with 1,252 sorties flown in seven months. By November 1943 they also began flying missions to detect enemy radar installations with specially-equipped Liberators for Lt. Lawrence Heron of the "Cast Mike" team, inspired by what became "Section 22" using the similar USAF B-24 "Ferret" aircraft. [4]
In mid-summer of 1944 a portion of the squadron was reformed at Navy Auxiliary Airfield Kearney Field while the majority of personnel were at Naval Air Station Hutchinson, Kansas for PB4Y-1 training. When that was completed and the full squadron assembled in late July, they flew non-stop across the Pacific to NAS Kaneohe Bay. Among the squadron's many other subsequent accomplishments, William E. Abbot (posthumous), and Paul F. Stevens received the Navy Cross for separate heroic actions.
In March 1945 the squadron moved to Clark Field in Luzon, Philippines and began operational night missions, daily search and reconnaissance patrols, and strikes on targets of opportunity from Shanghai to the coasts of Amami Ōshima, Okinawa and Daito Jima. Lt. Paul Stevens damaged Vice Admiral Yamagata’s aircraft which made a forced landing and the admiral committed suicide. He had just been named as the next Undersecretary of the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Squadron Wing assignments from 1950 included: