USN F-14 TOMCAT VF-103 JOLLY ROGERS FIGHTING 103 60TH ANNIVERSARY ROGERS PATCH

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USN F-14 TOMCAT VF-103 JOLLY ROGERS FIGHTING 103 60TH ANNIVERSARY ROGERS PATCH
This is a very special US NAVY USN F-14 TOMCAT VF-103 JOLLY ROGERS FIGHTING 103 60TH ANNIVERSARY ROGERS PATCH. You will receive the item as shown in the first photo.Please note that there are color variations due to different settings on different PCs and different Monitors. The color shown on your screen may not be the true color
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Strike Fighter Squadron 103 (VFA-103), nicknamed the Jolly Rogers is an aviation unit of the United States Navy established in 1952. VFA-103 flies the F/A-18F Super Hornet and is based at Naval Air Station Oceana, Virginia (US). The squadron's radio callsign is Victory and it is assigned to Carrier Air Wing Seven. In January 1983, VF-103 was among the last fighter squadrons to transition to the F-14A Tomcat. The squadron conducted the first East Coast fighter squadron’s low altitude AIM-54 Phoenix missile shoot a month later. In October 1985, VF-103 and VF-74 participated in the interception of the Egyptian Boeing 737 carrying the Achille Lauro hijackers. During a long range night intercept by VF-74 and VF-103, the 737 was forced to land at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily. The terrorists were taken into Italian custody, tried and sentenced. VF-103 and the rest of the airwing participated in Operation Attain Document and Operation El Dorado Canyon in the spring of 1986. In 1989, VF-103 transitioned to the F-14A+ (later redesignated F-14B). In August 1990 when Kuwait was invaded by Iraq, USS Saratoga was in the Mediterranean and soon joined USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Red Sea. VF-103 and VF-74 worked together to develop the fighter tactics which were during the Gulf War. When the war started in January 1991, VF-103 conducted fighter escort for the air wing’s strike packages, reconnaissance and bomb damage assessment and combat air patrols. On the fourth day of the war, while on an escort mission, a VF-103 F-14A+ was shot down by what is believed to be an SA-2 "Guideline" surface-to-air missile. After ejecting from his aircraft, the Radar Intercept Officer, Lieutenant Larry Slade, was captured by Iraqi troops and held in Baghdad as a POW until the end of the war. The pilot, Lieutenant Devon Jones, was able to evade capture and, after eight hours deep in enemy territory, was rescued by USAF Special Operations Forces. On 1 October 1995, VF-84 was disestablished bringing an end to the Jolly Rogers. Not wanting the Jolly Rogers insignia to fade away from U.S. Naval Aviation, VF-103 requested to do away with their "Slugger" moniker and adopt the Jolly Rogers name and insignia that had been previously used by VF-84. Also in 1995, VF-103 conducted the fleet feasibility testing of the U.S. Air Force's LANTIRN targeting pod in a rapid prototyping initiative that led to adoption of the LANTIRN for the Tomcat community. When they deployed with USS Enterprise in the summer of 1996, VF-103 became the first Tomcat squadron to introduce the LANTIRN targeting pod to operational service. The LANTIRN radically improved the F-14's strike capabilities by providing an autonomous precision strike capability. In 1997 VF-103 transferred from USS Enterprise to USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, and set sail to former Yugoslavia in June 1998 in support of NATO operations in Kosovo. In November, the carrier moved to the Persian Gulf in response to aggressive Iraqi posturing. VFA-103 and the rest of CVW-7 embarked on board USS Dwight D. Eisenhower on 2 January 2010 for a six-month deployment in support of 5th and 6th Fleet operations.[8] On 27 July 2010, the squadron returned home to NAS Oceana after completion of their latest deployment. After a successful maintenance and workup cycle, VFA-103 embarked with CVW-7 on board USS Dwight D. Eisenhower on 22 June 2012 for a scheduled nine-month deployment in the 5th Fleet Area of Operations. However, due to changes in operational requirements, VFA-103, CVW-7 and Dwight D. Eisenhower returned to NAS Oceana on 21 December 2012, to perform maintenance in preparation of returning to sea shortly thereafter. VFA-103 returned to sea on 21 February 2013 after the short turnaround, and along with the rest of CVW-7 and Carrier Strike Group Eight, supported operations in the 5th Fleet Area of Operations. After a combined eleven months at sea in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Persian Gulf presence operations, the squadron returned to NAS Oceana on 3 July 2013. In honor of the Jolly Rogers' 70th anniversary, the squadron undertook a massive redesign of the immensely recognizable skull and crossbones insignia, choosing to feature the original VF-17 patches, colors, and tail fin. The Jolly Rogers' F/A-18Fs were seen launching from USS Harry Truman in June 2016 participating in Operation Inherent Resolve, striking Daesh targets in Iraq and Syria, with multiple aircraft exhibiting signs of heavy combat, with a number of front fuselages being covered with bomb silhouettes representing munitions being dropped in combat air strikes.[9].
Other items in other pictures are for your reference only, available in my eBay Store. They will make a great addition to your SSI Shoulder Sleeve Insignia collection. You find only US Made items here, with the same
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