HISTORY

VA-195 was redesignated Strike Fighter Squadron 195 (VFA-195) on 1 April 1985 and commenced transition to the F/A-18A Hornet. The first of 12 new Lot 8 F/A-18As were delivered to the squadron in October, 1985. In 1986 VFA-195 was assigned to the newly established CVW-10. This wing was to deploy on USS Independence CV-62, and it was given the old CVW-19 tail code "NM". However, CVW-10 was never deployed. VFA-195 was the only squadron of this wing that was not disestablished in 1987. Instead, VFA-195 was reassigned to CVW-5 aboard USS Midway CV-41, when CVW-5's fighter squadrons transitioned from the F-4S Phantom II and the A-7E Corsair to the F/A-18 Hornet. VFA-195 joined the Forward Deployed Naval Forces in U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, Japan with the first aircraft arriving at NAF Atsugi on 14 November 1986.

VFA-195 was deployed aboard USS Midway when Iraq invaded Kuwait in August 1990. During Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm the squadron flew 564 combat missions, delivering 356 tons of ordnance. During the war, VFA-195 became the first Hornet squadron and first CVW-5 squadron to deliver a Walleye II glide bomb in combat during an air strike against the Iraqi Navy's HQ at Umm Qasr. During the strike, LCDR. Jeffery S. Ashby guided his Walleye II into the T-shaped building at Umm Qasr Naval Base. The next day, F-14s equipped with TARPS confirmed the Walleye hit was a success and a strike that was planned the next day was cancelled.

About three to four weeks into the war, LCDR. Ashby was about to lead a major six to eight plane strike against a communications building in the northern end of Basra, Iraq. Intelligence had been alerted by the presence of an Iraqi Super Frelon Helicopter fitted with Exocet ASM missiles. On 13 February 1991, LCDR. Ashby flying NF-104 and another Hornet from VFA-195 found the helicopter in the desert, with Ashby destroying it with a Walleye I. NF-104 would later have a kill marking of the Super Frelon applied to the aircraft when it was displayed at the WINGS 1991 airshow in Japan. On 10 August 1991, CVW-5 sailed with USS Midwayfor the last time, arriving in Hawaii on 22 August to swap with the new forward deployed carrier, USS Independence which had CVW-14. During the 'Great Carrier Air Wing SwapEx', VFA-195 transitioned to the F/A-18C Hornet and stayed with CVW-5.

​

 *due to DCS limitations, we fly off USS George Washington, instead of USS Independence.”