VA-873 (U.S. Navy)

VA-873
Country	United States
Allegiance	California
Branch	United States Navy
Type	Attack squadron
Role	Support following the capture of USS Pueblo (AGER-2)
Home port	Naval Air Station Alameda
Colors	White      Blue
Commanders
Commander	Glen W. Stinnett, Jr.
Insignia
Patch description	Colors for the insignia were: a white and blue background outlined in black; the blue background section had five white stars and the white section had a gold outline of San Francisco Golden Gate with two blue rows of waves beneath the bridge; separating the two sections was a stylized aircraft in black with a red flame coming from the tail; the scroll was white outlined in black with black lettering.
Aircraft flown
Attack	A-4B Skyhawk A-4C Skyhawk

A-4B Skyhawk similar to those flown by VA-873.

VA-873 was an attack squadron of the U.S. Navy Reserve, based at Naval Air Station Alameda, California. Its insignia was approved by CNO on 16 March 1964. Other details of its early years are sketchy, as few records exist for reserve squadrons prior to 1970, the year during which they began submitting history reports.

On 27 Jan 1968, The President directed the activation of VA-873 following the capture of USS Pueblo (AGER-2) by a North Korean patrol boat four days earlier. The squadron was deactivated and returned to reserve status on 12 October 1968.^[1]

Aircraft Assignment

The squadron first received the following aircraft on the dates shown:^[1]

• A-4B Skyhawk – 27 Jan 1968
• A-4C Skyhawk – May 1968

See also

• Attack aircraft
• List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons
• History of the United States Navy

References

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons.

1. Grossnick, Roy A. (1995). Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons, Volume 1, Chapter 2, Section 11: Attack Squadron Histories for VA-210 to VA-873 (PDF). Washington, D.C.: Naval Historical Center, Department of the Navy. p. 293. Retrieved 2014-02-22.