VPB-117
military unit
VPB-117 was a Patrol Bombing Squadron of the U.S. Navy. The squadron was established as Bombing Squadron 117 (VB-117) on 1 February 1944, redesignated Patrol Bombing Squadron 117 (VPB-117) on 1 October 1944 and disestablished on 15 November 1945.
Operational history
1 February – July 1944: VB-117 was established at NAAS Camp Kearny, California, under the operational control of FAW-14, as a heavy bombing squadron flying the PB4Y-1 Liberator. These aircraft were equipped with the latest AN/APQ-5 low-altitude radar bombing gear. Ground school and flight training continued through the end of July 1944. In August the squadron began preparations for its trans-Pacific flight to NAS Kaneohe Bay, Hawaii. The training period was marred by the crash of Lieutenant (jg) Golden and crew at NAAS Camp Kearny on 6 June. The aircraft crashed into the supply hut of VB-102, resulting in the death of nine VB-117 personnel and nine VB-102 personnel and injuries to 11 others. The destruction of VB-102's supplies set back the squadron's planned trans-Pacific flight by one month.
11 August 1944: VB-117 flew the trans-Pacific flight to NAS Kaneohe Bay, with the last aircraft arriving on 13 August.
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This entry incorporates text from “VPB-117” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.