Истребительная эскадрилья VFA-213 "Чёрные львы": История и боевой путь

Strike Fighter Squadron 213 (VFA 213), also known as the "Black Lions", is a United States Navy strike fighter squadron based at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia. It was established in 1955 and is currently equipped with the F/A 18F Super Hornet. The squadron is assigned to Carrier Air Wing Eight and uses the radio callsign Lion.

Fighter Squadron Two One Three (VF 213) was established on 22 June 1955 at NAS Moffett Field, California. The first cruise was aboard Bon Homme Richard flying the F2H Banshee. When they returned, they transitioned to the F4D Skyray which they flew for two deployments on Lexington. They then transitioned to the F3H Demon, which gave the squadron the capability to fire the newly deployed AIM 7 Sparrow air to air missile. VF 213 deployed next for a third cruise aboard USS Lexington.

In June 1961, VF 213 moved to NAS Miramar, which became their home for the next 36 years. Three years later, in February 1964, VF 213 accepting the first of their new F 4B Phantom IIs.

The squadron deployed to WestPac on USS Abraham Lincoln in May 1991 in support of UN sanctions against Iraq. VF 213 flew combat air patrol and TARPS missions, recording the devastation of Kuwait oil fields. In 1993, VF 213 became the sole F 14 squadron on Abraham Lincoln. That same year, VF 213 flew in support of Operation Restore Hope in Somalia and Operation Southern Watch over Iraq. Kara Hultgreen, the first qualified female F 14 pilot in the US Navy, was assigned to VF 213, and on 25 October 1994, her F 14 crashed while on approach to USS Abraham Lincoln. Both she and her RIO ejected, but only the RIO survived. The 1995 WestPac cruise again saw the squadron flying over the skies of southern Iraq. In 1996, VF 213 moved to USS Kitty Hawk for the 1996–1997 WESTPAC deployment. During this deployment VF 213 fired twenty six AIM 54 Phoenix and six AIM 9 Sidewinder missiles, including one event where six planes launched twelve Phoenix missiles. These mass firings were conducted to reduce the numbers of older Phoenix missiles in inventory, as they were being removed from service. After the 1997 cruise, VF 213 moved from NAS Miramar to NAS Oceana and transitioned to the F 14D Super Tomcat, becoming the fourth F 14 squadron to receive the D model. In 1998 they moved to Carl Vinson, and began work ups for their next cruise. During the 1998 1999 deployment, VF 213 was the first squadron to fire an AIM 54C Phoenix with the aircrew on night vision goggles. Two months into the deployment, VF 213 participated in Operation Desert Fox, which was the Navy's largest combat evolution since the Gulf War. This successful deployment included the longest combat line period in over 25 years. F 14Ds from VF 213, as well as the rest of the embarked carrier air wing aboard USS Carl Vinson, joined other US air assets in the final strikes of that operation. Highlights of the cruise included the execution of 19 strikes, dropping 20 laser guided bombs, supporting 11 combined strikes, flying 70 missions, and logging 230 combat sorties, including 45 reconnaissance missions imaging more than 580 targets. On 5 January 1999, two F 14Ds on patrol over Iraq were directed to intercept two Iraqi MiG 25s south of the "no fly zone". The Tomcats fired two AIM 54 missiles, the first ever Phoenix combat launch by the US Navy. The Iraqi jets turned north and the missiles fell short of their targets. VF 213/CVW 11 returned home in the spring of 1999.

After the September 11 attacks, USS Carl Vinson with CVW 11 was the second carrier battle group after Enterprise on station in the North Arabian Sea, preparing for attacks against Afghanistan. On 7 October 2001 during a CVW 11 strike, VF 213 dropped the first bombs of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) on an SA 3 site near Kabul International Airport. VF 213 also conducted reconnaissance, utilizing their TARPS pods, and also provided laser weapon guidance for F/A 18 Hornets and GPS weapons coordinates for Hornets and USAF strike aircraft. During the ten weeks VF 213 were supporting OEF they flew over 500 combat sorties, over 2600 combat flight hours and expended 435,000 pounds of ordnance and provided reconnaissance with their TARPS pods. VF 213 was also the first F 14 unit to use its internal 20 mm cannon in combat during the Battle of Mazar e Sharif VF 213 received the 2001 Commander Naval Air Pacific Fleet Battle "E", Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Safety "S", Clifton Award and the Commander Fighter Wing Atlantic Golden Wrench for their performance in 2001. VFA 213 became the first squadron to receive Dual Cockpit Cueing System for both pilot and naval flight officer, retrofitted with an aft cockpit Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System (JHMCS), on 18 May 2007. On 13 May 2008 an F/A 18F from the squadron operating from USS Theodore Roosevelt accidentally dropped a 500 pound laser guided bomb 3 mile (5 km) outside of the Pinecastle bombing range near the Ocala National Forest. The bomb explosion started a wildfire which burned of vegetation. No one was injured in the blaze, but the emergency response cost $342,946. A Navy investigation determined that technical misunderstandings and crew fatigue contributed to the mishap. The two crew members of the jet were later returned to flying status after a board review. VFA 213, along with CVW 8 and USS Theodore Roosevelt, participated in Joint Task Force Exercise 08 4 Operation Brimstone off the coast of North Carolina between 21 and 31 July 2008. The British carrier , the amphibious assault ship Iwo Jima with associated units, the Brazilian Navy frigate Greenhalgh, and the French submarine French submarine Améthyste also participated in the event. On 8 September 2008, VFA 213 and the rest of CVW 8 deployed on board USS Theodore Roosevelt on a regularly scheduled deployment. On 4 October the Roosevelt Carrier Group arrived in Cape Town, South Africa, the first visit by a US aircraft carrier since 1967 and three days later the carrier left Cape Town. CVW 8 and CVN 71 supported Operation Enduring Freedom and flew more than 3,100 sorties and dropped more than 59,500 pounds of ordnance while providing close air support for ISAF forces in Afghanistan.

On 11 May 2011, the squadrons of CVW 8 embarked on George H. W. Bush's maiden deployment, scheduled to conduct operations in the US 5th and 6th Fleet areas of operations. On 27 January 2017, VFA 213 departed on a combat deployment in support of Operation Inherent Resolve (OIR), embarked on board USS George H. W. Bush. From 10 February 2017 to 9 March 2017, the command conducted OIR combat operations from the Mediterranean Sea. VFA 213 resumed combat operations on 23 March 2017 from the Persian Gulf until 22 May 2017. In January 2018, VFA 213 participated in the initial flight deck certification for the US Navy's newest aircraft carrier, Gerald R. Ford. On 14 March 2018, a Super Hornet from VFA 213 crashed near Key West killing the pilot and naval flight officer. During April and May 2018, the squadrons of CVW 8 conducted joint operations with French Naval Forces out of NAS Oceana. Following those operations, the air wing and French aircraft embarked on USS George H. W. Bush, conducting strike missions. In September 2018, VFA 213 attended the Naval Weapons Systems Evaluation Program (NWSEP) out of Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida, with a five aircraft detachment. During the detachment, VFA 213 employed 19 air to air missiles, including nine AIM 7 Sparrows, seven AIM 9M Sidewinders, one AIM 9X Sidewinder, and two AIM 9X Block II Sidewinders. Subsequently, the command earned the 2018 Commander, Naval Air Forces Atlantic Grand Slam award for demonstrating the highest capability to maintain and utilize air to air missile weapons systems.

VF 213 is prominently featured and referenced in the movie Top Gun, which opens with footage of F 14s from VF 213 and VF 114 taking off on the USS Enterprise. A fictional depiction of VF 213 appears in the movie as the squadron of characters Tom "Iceman" Kazansky and Ron "Slider" Kerner (played by Val Kilmer and Rick Rossovich respectively). Despite the fictional squadron's designation, it uses the insignia design of VFA 25, a squadron which never flew the F 14 in real life.