#1532 P-8A Poseidon VP-9 print
Description
Squadron Prints - Lithograph No. 1532 - 169329, P-8A Poseidon, Patrol Squadron NINE 'VP-9', NAS Whidbey Island, WA.
Patrol Squadron NINE (VP-9) is home-ported at NAS Whidbey Island, Washington and provides Anti-Submarine Warfare, Anti-Surface Warfare, Maritime Domain Awareness, and Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance capabilities to support United States Combatant Commander initiatives worldwide. Utilizing the P-8A “Poseidon” aircraft, they employ the latest technology, tactics, techniques and procedures to execute on-station, providing next generation capabilities in multi-theater environments. VP-9 was commissioned at NAS Whidbey Island, Washington on March 15, 1951 under the command of CDR M. B. Bailey. The maiden flight of the newly formed squadron was flown in a P-4Y2 “Privateer.” Shortly after commissioning, the Golden Eagles embarked upon their first deployment to Naval Station Kodiak, Alaska. In the 1950s and 1960s, VP-9 participated in numerous deployed operations throughout Asia and the Northern Pacific, including joint night operations with U.S. Marine Corps fighter aircraft. Utilizing flares, VP-9 aircraft illuminated significant North Korean targets for attacking aircraft. Other significant milestones included: homeport change to NAS Moffett Field, CA, in 1963 and transition to the P-2V “Neptune” in 1953, the P-3A “Orion” in 1963 and the P-3B in 1966. With the advent of the computerized P-3C Update I, VP-9 began a new era in the 1970s. In the 1980s, VP-9 became the first squadron to deploy to the Western Pacific with the APS-137 Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar. Then in 1992, the squadron received orders to make its fourth homeport change to NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii. After their successful initial deployment to FIFTH and SEVENTH Fleets with the newly received upgraded AIP P-3C aircraft, VP-9 again made history with the launch of a Standoff Land Attack Missile. This first launch, using in-flight target reprogramming, occurred during Fleet Battle Experiment ECHO at Point Mugu, CA. The Golden Eagles made their fifth homeport change to MCBH Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii, in May 1999. In 2012, VP-9 broke new ground by deploying to SIXTH Fleet in Sigonella, Italy for the first time in squadron history. In 2017, following a highly successful deployment to the SEVENTH Fleet AOR, VP-9 executed a homeport shift from MCBH Kaneohe Bay back to NAS Whidbey Island, where the squadron had been commissioned 66 years previously. The Golden Eagles subsequently transitioned to the P-8A “Poseidon”, the world’s most advanced Maritime Patrol aircraft, bidding farewell to the venerable “Orion” after 54 years. VP-9 currently operates out of NAS Whidbey Island and continues the legacy of professionalism and war fighting expertise that has been the hallmark of the Golden Eagles for over 60 years as part of the world’s finest Maritime Patrol and Reconnaissance Force.
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