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| Strike Fighter Squadron 137 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Active | 2 July 1985 – present |
| Country |  United States |
| Branch |  United States Navy |
| Type | Fighter/Attack |
| Role | Close air support Air interdiction Aerial reconnaissance |
| Part of | .svg) Carrier Air Wing Seventeen |
| Garrison/HQ |  NAS Lemoore |
| Nickname(s) | Kestrels |
| Commanders | |
| Commanding Officer | CDR Hall “Waffles” Graham |
| Executive Officer | CDR Tony "Dirty" Kopp |
| Command Master Chief | CMDCM Andre Delarosa |
| Aircraft flown | |
| Fighter | F/A-18 Hornet F/A-18E Super Hornet |
Strike Fighter Squadron 137 (VFA-137), also known as the "Kestrels", are aUnited States NavyF/A-18E Super Hornet strike fighter squadron stationed atNaval Air Station Lemoore, California. Their radio callsign is "Falcon".
Strike Fighter Squadron 137 was established on 2 July 1985. They received their first Lot VIIIF/A-18A Hornet on 25 November 1985 and in October 1986 the squadron was awarded the Silver Anchor for new construction squadrons. In the course of their 23-year history, they have a safety record that includes over 90,000 mishap-free flight hours.
In 1987–1988 the squadron made its first deployment to the Mediterranean Sea embarked on the aircraft carrierUSS Coral Sea, as part ofCarrier Air Wing Thirteen. That year the squadron was recognized with the Commander Naval Air Forces, U.S. Atlantic FleetBattle “E” award.
In August 1989, the squadron was back on board USSCoral Sea patrolling the Eastern Mediterranean in response toColonel Higgins' murder in Lebanon, winning the Golden Tailhook award on their second deployment.
In October 1990, the squadron transferred toCarrier Air Wing Six on boardUSS Forrestal, completing an accelerated work up cycle and their third deployment. On cruise, the squadron flew sorties over Iraq in support ofOperation Provide Comfort and won two more Tailhook Awards.
In September 1992, the squadron completed a homeport change to NAS Lemoore and transitioned to the night attack capable Lot 15 F/A-18C. In May 1993, the squadron joinedCarrier Air Wing Two (CVW-2) and embarked on boardUSS Constellation for their first Western Pacific deployment in November 1994. On this deployment, and the 1997 deployment, the squadron patrolled the skies over Iraq, enforcing the United Nations no-fly zone in support ofOperation Southern Watch. In 1999 and again in 2001, VFA-137 employed precision-guided ordnance against Iraq as part of a Coalition Forces response to repeated violations of the no-fly zone.
In November 2002, VFA-137 deployed to the Persian Gulf on board USSConstellation for her final deployment. The squadron participated in extensive operations in the skies over Iraq, initially in support of Operation Southern Watch, and then in combat operations duringOperation Iraqi Freedom. During the course of the conflict, the squadron flew over 500 combat sorties and dropped more than 300,000 pounds of precision-guided ordnance.
The squadron returned home in June 2003, and began the transition to the new Lot 25F/A-18E Super Hornet. After completing the Safe for Flight certification, they became the third F/A-18E squadron in the U.S. Navy. In April 2004, Commander, Naval Air Force, U.S. Pacific Fleet awarded the Battle "E" for calendar year 2003. Subsequently, Commander, Naval Air Force awarded the 2003 Captain Michael J. Estocin Award for exceptional operational performance and flight safety.
VFA-137 embarked aboardUSS Abraham Lincoln for a Western Pacific deployment in October 2004, participating inOperation Unified Assistance, the humanitarian relief effort to aid the victims of thetsunami that struck Southeast Asia. In March 2006, the squadron again deployed with CVW 2 aboard USSAbraham Lincoln for a 5-month WestPac. The deployment included port calls in Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore and Sasebo, Japan, and was marked by participation in ExercisesFoal Eagle,Valiant Shield, andRIMPAC. Between 24–31 March 2006, during Foal Eagle 2006 exercises, strike squadronsVFA-2,VFA-34, VFA-137, andVFA-151 from CVW-2 teamed with U.S. Air Force aircraft from the18th Wing based atKadena Air Base to provide combat air patrols and coordinated bombing runs via the exercise's Combined Air Operations Center.[1] VFA-137 returned from deployment in August 2006.
After a work-up cycle that included 2 detachments to NAS Fallon and 3 underway periods on board USSAbraham Lincoln, VFA-137 deployed to the western Pacific on USSAbraham Lincoln in March 2008. Following 7 months at sea, including 5 months in the Persian Gulf supporting Operations Iraqi Freedom andEnduring Freedom, the squadron returned home in October 2008.
On 15 March 2010, two VFA-137 aircraft were involved in a mid-air collision while training at NAS Fallon. Both pilots survived with one managing to land his plane, while the other pilot ejected and was rescued by helicopter.[2] An investigation determined that pilot error was to blame for the collision. The responsible pilot's name was redacted from the report released to the public.[3]
In 2019, the squadron was transferred toCarrier Air Wing 17 thus swapping withVFA-113.[4]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)| 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) | |||||
| Carrier Fleet Logistics Multi-Mission (VRM) | |||||
| Patrol |
| ||||
| Unmanned (VUP) | |||||
| Training (VT) | |||||
| Helicopter Mine Countermeasures (HM) | |||||
| Helicopter Sea Combat (HSC) | |||||
| Helicopter Maritime Strike (HSM) | |||||
| Helicopter Training (HT) | |||||
