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Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base:
VFA-204
 Strike Fighter Squadron 204 was originally commissioned as Attack Squadron 204 flying A-4C Skyhawks at NAS Memphis, Tennessee on 1 July, 1970. VFA-204 began its long list of tactical accomplishments by winning back to back CVWR-20 Bombing Derbies in 1971 and 1972. VA-204 received the CNO annual Safety Award for 1973. The award represented over 5,000 hours of accident free flying for the year. In 1975 the River Rattlers won the F. Trubee Davison Award as the “Best Tailhook Squadron in the Naval Reserve.”
The Squadron was directed to cease flight operations in December 1977 and transfer all A-4 aircraft in custody. In complying with that directive, VA-204 closed the final chapter in the United States Navy’s single seat Skyhawk attack aviation era. In March 1978 the squadron moved from NAS Memphis to NAS New Orleans and began receiving A-7B aircraft. With transition and relocation complete, VA-204 began establishing enviable records of operational readiness and safety.
The squadron earned the CNO Safety Award again in 1982 and 1983, and was nominated for the Noel Davis (Battle “E”) in 1983. The tradition of excellence continued in 1984 by winning the CVWR-20 Golden Wrench Award and the Battle “E”.
With transition from the A-7B to the A-7E completed in 1986, the next four years saw the River Rattlers establish a high level of tactics and excellence in the Corsair II. During this period, the squadron completed seven weapons detachments, three carrier qualification evolutions, air wing active duty to NAS Fallon and -embarkation the USS FORRESTAL (CV-59) and USS DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER (CVN-69).
The last year of A-7E operations in CVWR-20, 1990, was one of the -squadron’s best years ever. Though severely hampered by numerous aircraft transfer and acceptance inspections, VA-204 flew 113 percent of its original flight hour program and conducted seven deployments away from NAS New Orleans. On January 28, 1991, VA-204 celebrated ten years of FOD free operations. For their operational achievements and safety programs, the River Rattlers earned the CVWR-20 nomination for the Battle “E” and received the CNO Safety Award for 1990.
Attack Squadron 204 was redesignated Strike Fighter Squadron 204 on 1 April 1991 and accepted its first FA-18, thus ending twelve years of flying A-7 Corsair. The squadron officially completed its -transition to the F/A-18 Hornet in March 1993, and the next month began initial adversary training at NAS Oceana, VA. In October the squadron became the first Reserve Strike Fighter Squadron to provide adversary support to the active duty fleet during a one-week detachment to NAS Key West. In 1993, VFA-204 received its sixth CNO Safety Award, completing 13 years and 50,000 Class-A mishap free flight hours.
The squadron received an overall grade of 98.2 on its Conventional Weapons Technical Proficiency Inspection (CWTPI) in 1994, the highest score ever achieved by a Reserve Strike Fighter Squadron, and earned its second Battle “E” as well as the squadron’s second F. Trubee Davison Award as ‘Best Tailhook Squadron in the Naval Reserve.
The Meritorious Unit Commendation was awarded to the squadron in 1995 for its extremely successful transition from the A-7E to the FA-18, which the unit flies today.
VFA 204’s mission is to safely train and maintain maximum mobilization readiness for immediate deployment in the event of war or national emergency. To provide the highest quality training for the fleet. The unit remains committed to crisis response readiness with our active counterparts. VFA 204 stands ready to deploy to any theater of operations as deemed necessary. |
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