General information

• Primary and Intermediate flight school for USN
  United States Navy
  The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
  
   and USMC
  United States Marine Corps
  The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
  
   Naval Flight Officer
  Naval Flight Officer
  A Naval Flight Officer is an aeronautically designated commissioned officer in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps that specializes in airborne weapons and sensor systems. NFOs are not pilots per se, but they may perform many "co-pilot" functions, depending on the type of aircraft...
  
  s (NFO) and USAF Weapon Systems Officer
  Weapon systems officer
  A Weapon Systems Officer is an air Flight Officer directly involved in all air operations and weapon systems of the fighter in the United States Navy. A Weapon Systems Officer ("WSO", pronounced "wizzo") is an air Flight Officer directly involved in all air operations and weapon systems of the...
  
  s (WSO).
• The squadron's radio callsign is Buck.

History

Initially established as Basic Training Group NINE (BTG-9) in the 1950s, the squadron was redesignated as Training Squadron FOUR (VT-4) on May 1, 1960 and based at Naval Air Station Pensacola

Naval Air Station Pensacola

Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola , "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United States Navy base located next to Warrington, Florida, a community southwest of the Pensacola city limits...

, Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

.
Its original mission was providing flight instruction for US Navy and US Marine Corps Student Naval Aviator

Naval Aviator

A United States Naval Aviator is a qualified pilot in the United States Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard.-Naming Conventions:Most Naval Aviators are Unrestricted Line Officers; however, a small number of Limited Duty Officers and Chief Warrant Officers are also trained as Naval Aviators.Until 1981...

s in the basic jet training syllabus utilizing the T-2A version of the T-2 Buckeye

T-2 Buckeye

|-See also:-External links:*****...

 aircraft.
In 1965, Training Squadron FOUR transitioned to the T-2B aircraft and its mission was modified to become the Naval Air Training Command's sole site for providing student pilots with basic jet flight instruction in aerial gunnery and carrier qualification.
In 1971, Training Squadron FOUR transitioned to the T-2C aircraft. The squadron mission was changed once again, to provide flight training in all phases of the basic jet syllabus.

In September 1972, Training Squadron FOUR acquired the TF-9J providing flight instruction in both basic and advanced jet training. This mission was unique in the Naval Air Training Command in that student pilots experienced their first flight in a jet aircraft in VT-4 and remained aboard to be subsequently designated Naval Aviators.

November 1973 saw the introduction of the TA-4J to replace the aging TF-9J for advanced flight training.

Beginning in December 1975, VT-4 had the added mission of providing flight instruction for allied foreign military pilots. Flight training has been given to student pilots from Kuwait, Spain, Singapore and Indonesia.

In addition to pilot training, VT-4 has had two other significant missions. From 1973 to 1978, VT-4 provided summer jet orientation flights for midshipmen of the United States Naval Academy and the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps. From 1975 to 1979, VT-4 was also responsible for the training of Naval Flight Surgeons.

In December 1985, VT-4’s mission was changed from strike training to the sole site of E-2/C-2 intermediate training in CNATRA. In this role, the squadron carrier qualified Student Naval Aviators from the multiengine training pipeline, informally called the "prop ppipeline," who we selected to eventually fly the E-2 Hawkeye

E-2 Hawkeye

The Grumman E-2 Hawkeye is an American all-weather, aircraft carrier-capable tactical airborne early warning aircraft. This twin-turboprop aircraft was designed and developed during the late 1950s and early 1960s by the Grumman Aircraft Company for the United States Navy as a replacement for the...

 and C-2 Greyhound aircraft in the Fleet. Graduates of VT-4 would receive their wings and designations as Naval Aviators and proceed to the Fleet Replacement Squadron.

In January 1992, VT-4’s mission became the E-2/C-2 advanced training site. To accomplish this mission VT-4 flew the T-2C.

During 1996, VT-4 underwent significant change. From a small all Navy Advanced E-2/C-2 pilot training squadron with a student throughput of 36 per year, it became a joint Primary and Intermediate Naval Flight Officer/Navigator training squadron with an annual student throughput of 450. Instructor ranks grew from fourteen Navy pilots to 71 Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force pilots and NFO/Navigators. The squadron transitioned from flying the T-2C to flying the T-34C Turbo Mentor

T-34 Mentor

The Beechcraft T-34 Mentor is a propeller-driven, single-engined, military trainer aircraft derived from the Beechcraft Model 35 Bonanza. The earlier versions of the T-34, dating from around the late 1940s to the 1950s, were piston-engined. These were eventually succeeded by the upgraded T-34C...

 and T-1A Jayhawk. VT-4 also instructs student navigators from Germany, Italy, Saudi Arabia, Norway and Denmark. From April to September 1996 the squadron had primary NFO/NAV and advanced pilot training being conducted simultaneously. Following the final CQ detachment in September, the mission converted entirely to NFO/NAV training. On 30 September 1996, the last VT-4 Naval Aviators earned their wings.

In January 2003, VT-4 initiated instructor orientation flights in the T-6A “Texan II”, the joint Air Force/Navy platform slated to replace the T-34C as the Primary phase syllabus trainer. The T-6A “Texan II” is a single engine, two-seat trainer which is fully aerobatic. It features a pressurized cockpit, a G-tolerance enhancement system and dual zero-zero ejection seats. The T-6A utilizes a state-of-the-art digital cockpit to help familiarize students with what they will encounter in their fleet tours.

In August 2003, VT-4 marked its first training flight in the T-6A “Texan II”.

In April 2005, VT-4 completed the transition to the T-6A “Texan II” and flew its last T-34C “Turbomentor” student sortie.

In December 2010, VT-4 officially became a part of Training Squadron 10

Training Squadron 10

Training Squadron 10 is a training squadron of the United States Navy.-General information:*Basic and intermediate flight school for Naval Flight Officers . VT-10 is tasked with training to go to advanced flight school in the United States Navy...

. All VT-4 instructors and students became a part of VT-10 and the squadron officially answers to the VT-10 Commanding Officer.

Since its commissioning, VT-4 has amassed over 600,000 flight hours. The squadron has logged 42,000 carrier landings.

See also

• History of the United States Navy
  History of the United States Navy
  The history of the United States Navy divides into two major periods: the "Old Navy", a small but respected force of sailing ships that was also notable for innovation in the use of ironclads during the American Civil War, and the "New Navy", the result of a modernization effort that began in the...
  
  
• List of United States Navy aircraft squadrons