It has been over sixty years since Verna’s Dad served in the U.S. Navy. He was stationed at Gibraltar in 1948 where Navy Patrol Squadron 26 had a detachment at the time.
The Cold War was fully in progress, and Dad’s Squadron was right in the thick of it all. He was a flight crew member and flew missions on the Navy version of the old B24 – the PB4Y-2 ‘Privateer.’ He flew missions all over the Mediterranean, Europe, the North Atlantic Ocean and back to the US for logistics and repairs.
Image: PB4Y-2 similar to ones in Dad’s squadron.
I did the research on his old squadron and brought him a package of information and history about VP-26, complete with pictures and the squadron patch seen above. That triggered a lot of old memories and discussions with Bill about his adventures in VP-26.
This mission statement is taken from the VP-26 Website:
Patrol Squadron VP-26, a member of Patrol Wing FIVE, is a Maritime Patrol Squadron with a worldwide theater of operations. Mission areas include: Anti-Submarine Warfare (ASW), Anti-Surface Warfare (ASU), Command and Control Warfare (C2W), Command, Control, and Communications (CCC), Intelligence (INT), Mine Warfare (MIW), and Mobility (MOB). Although the “TRIDENTS” are homeported at U.S. (Naval Air Station) NAS Brunswick, Maine, their reputation is known throughout the world. The Tridents have demonstrated success in all of these tasks and in all the services performed, one thing remains constant: Team Trident is at the ready, supporting the mission… Anytime… Anywhere!
I downloaded the history file that I found on the VP-26 website and have made it available here in case you want to read about Dad’s old squadron. Click here for the Complete VP-26 History (PDF).
