Second VA-125 (U.S. Navy)

Attack Squadron 125
An A-7A Corsair II, formerly of VA-125, in the aircraft boneyard at Davis Monthan AFB in 1971
Active	30 June 1956 - 1 October 1977
Country	United States
Branch	United States Navy
Type	Attack
Nickname(s)	Skylancers Rough Raiders
Aircraft flown
Attack	F9F-8 Cougar A4 Skyhawk A-7 Corsair II

VA-125 was an Attack Squadron of the U.S. Navy, and was the second squadron to bear the VA-125 designation. It was established as VA-26 on 30 June 1956, and redesignated VA-125 on 11 April 1958. The squadron was disestablished on 1 October 1977. Its nickname was Skylanchers from 1956-1958, and Rough Raiders thereafter.^[1]

Operational history

• 11 April 1958: The squadron’s mission was changed from air-to-ground/surface attack to the indoctrination and training of pilots and enlisted personnel in attack aircraft for assignment to combat carrier squadrons.
• 11 December 1958: The squadron’s commanding officer, Commander J. E. Thomas, was killed in an aircraft accident.
• March 1960: With the addition of the A4D-2N Skyhawk, the squadron added radar and inflight refueling training to its flight syllabus.
• 19 May 1966: VA-125 was the first squadron in the Navy to receive the TA-4F Skyhawk.
• June 1966: The first of several groups of Australians arrived for training by the squadron on the A-4 Skyhawk. The pilots were to form the nucleus of Australia’s first A-4 squadron scheduled for assignment to HMAS Melbourne.
• 13 March 1967: The squadron’s commanding officer, Commander J. D. Shaw, was killed in an aircraft accident during a routine carrier qualification exercise on the USS Kearsarge.
• 31 March 1969: The last A-4 Fleet Replacement Pilot class began.
• 30 June 1969: The last A-4 Fleet Replacement Enlisted Maintenance training program was completed.
• November 1969: The squadron began to develop the required training program for the Light Attack Weapons School. In December 1969 the squadron, in conjunction with VA-122, inaugurated a graduate level course for the Light Attack Weapons School that involved all phases of attack aviation.
• January 1970: The first A-7 Fleet Replacement Enlisted Maintenance and Fleet Replacement Pilot classes began.^[1]

Home port assignments

The squadron was assigned to these home ports, effective on the dates shown:^[1]

• NAS Miramar – 30 June 1956
• NAS Moffett Field – August 1956
• NAS Lemoore – 24 July 1961

Aircraft Assignment

The squadron first received the following aircraft on the dates shown:^[1]

• F9F-8B Cougar – Jul 1956
• F9F-8 Cougar – Oct 1956
• A4D-1 Skyhawk – 10 Jun 1958
• A4D-2/A-4B Skyhawk – Aug 1958
• A4D-2N/A-4C Skyhawk – 03 Mar 1960
• AD-5/A-1E Skyraider – Sep 1960
• A-4E Skyhawk – Dec 1962
• TA-4F Skyhawk – 19 May 1966
• A-4F Skyhawk – Feb 1968
• A-7B Corsair II – 25 Sep 1969
• A-7A Corsair II – Oct 1969
• A-7C Corsair II – Aug 1975

See also

• VA-125 (U.S. Navy)
• Attack aircraft
• List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons
• History of the United States Navy

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons.

1. Grossnick, Roy A. (1995). "Second VA-125" (pdf). Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons. Naval Historical Center. 1. Washington, DC: Department of the Navy. p. 196.