VP-9 Golden Eagles P-8 Tailflash

A custom 20 inch plaque of VP-9 Golden Eagles P-8 Tailflash. Each piece is carved from wood and handpainted to provide a piece you’ll love.

Patrol Squadron NINE was commissioned at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington, on March 15, 1951, under the command of Commander M.B. Bailey.  The new squadron flew its maiden flight in a P4Y-2 Privateer.  Within a few months the “Golden Eagles” embarked on their first deployment to Naval Station Kodiak, Alaska.  Since that time, the squadron has participated in a wide variety of missions around the world.

For the remainder of the 1950s and 1960s, Patrol Squadron NINE participated in numerous deployed operations throughout Asia and the Northern Pacific. VP-9 provided support for night combat operations in the Korean War in which VP-9 P4Y-2 Privateers dropped illumination flares for Marine Corps F7F attack planes to use during strikes on North Korean targets.  Other significant milestones included: changing homeports to NAS Alameda, CA in 1952, a move to NAS Moffett Field, CA in 1963, transitioning to the new P-2V Neptune in 1953, the P-3A Orion in 1963, and the P-3B Orion in 1966.  While deployed to several locations in Alaska in 1958, the squadron flew polar scouting missions for the USS NAUTILUS’ historic first voyage under the polar ice cap.  From 1963 through 1972, the squadron deployed to Okinawa; the Philippines; Kam Ranh Bay, Republic of South Vietnam; U-Tapao, Thailand, and Guam in support of Operation MARKET TIME and other operations during the Vietnam War.
In1970, while deployed to Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni, VP-9 earned its third Meritorious Unit Commendation for patrolling more than nine million square miles of ocean, ranging from the Arctic Ocean to the Philippine Sea, and, in the following decades, saw deployments covering over three-quarters of the globe.  In 1976, VP-9 began a new era of maritime patrol aviation with the squadron’s transition to the computerized and upgraded P-3C Update I.  In November 1986, VP-9 became the first squadron to deploy to the Western Pacific area of operations with the APS-137 Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR).  The P-3C Update III was introduced in 1990, expanding the mission capabilities of the squadron.  In 1992, Patrol Squadron NINE moved to a new home, NAS Barbers Point, Hawaii.
During the 1997–1998 Inter-Deployment Training Cycle (IDTC), the “Golden Eagles” were chosen to spearhead the Fleet introduction of the Anti-Surface Warfare Improvement Program (AIP) P-3C aircraft.  Among other improvements, the state-of-the-art AIP aircraft includes a comprehensive upgrade of aircraft sensors and command, control, communications, computers and intelligence (C4I) capabilities. In recognition of the highly successful deployment and introduction of the new AIP aircraft, VP-9 was awarded the 1998 Coastal Command Trophy. VP-9’s Maintenance Department also earned the prestigious AVCM Donald M. Neal Aircraft Maintenance “Golden Wrench” Award for sustained maintenance excellence.
After the successful initial deployment of AIP to both FIFTH and SEVENTH Fleets, VP-9 again made history with the launch of a Standoff Land Attack Missile (SLAM) during Fleet Battle Experiment ECHO at Point Mugu, CA on April 14, 1999, the first such launch after in-flight target reprogramming. In addition to the normal IDTC requirements, the “Golden Eagles” made a fifth homeport change to Marine Corps Base Hawaii Kaneohe Bay in May 1999.  VP-9 was the first Patrol Squadron to operate from Kaneohe Bay, hosting the multi-national ASWEX and JTFEX 99-1.  The “Golden Eagles” proved their Under-Sea Warfare (USW) prowess when they were called upon to locate and track a real-world target, during Operation PHANTOM MENACE, which resulted in the most successful theater USW prosecution in recent history.  In recognition of its USW expertise, VP-9 was awarded the coveted Captain Arnold Jay Isbell Trophy for USW