History
Vietnam: 1953 to 1974
During the latter conflict the squadron took part in several combat cruises, flying variants of the F-8 Crusader.
The only recorded 'shoot down' of the Vietnam war was on the 9th of July, 1968. Lieutenant Commander John B. Nichols III, in an F8-E, shot down a MiG-17.
In the late 1960s and early 1970s, Crusaders began to be replaced by F-4 Phantoms, especially aboard the larger aircraft carriers. By 1972, F-8s had disappeared from most carrier based fighter squadrons, having been relegated to the reserves or placed in storage. By the last year of the Vietnam war, only four fighter squadrons flew the F-8: VF-24 and VF-211 from the Hancock and VF-191 and VF-194 from the Oriskany. All of them flew the F-8J upgrade of the F-8E. VFP-63's detachments still continued to operate the RF-8G. Most of the smaller 27C carriers had been retired by this time, leaving only the Oriskany and the Hancock still in service. Most of the Atlantic Fleet Crusader squadrons had already been decommissioned.
