The “Blue Blasters” of Strike Fighter Squadron THIRTY FOUR (VFA-34), flying 10 F/A-18 Hornet aircraft, returned to their home base at NAS Oceana Friday, August 3 following their eight month deployment aboard USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72).
The squadron left Oceana in early December, 2011 and flew aboard Lincoln in San Diego for what was expected to be a five month deployment.
Due to the continuing mission in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) they were extended twice.
As part of Carrier Air Wing TWO (CVW 2), the “Blue Blasters” executed 479 OEF missions and racked up 2,940 combat flight hours while employing their weapons with 100% accuracy in support of coalition ground forces.
The squadron completed a total of 1,465 sorties for 4,350 hours for the entire deployment.
Their many accomplishments include being awarded the Commander, Naval Air Force Atlantic Safety Award and receiving “ CVW 2’s “Top Hook” award three times.
The squadron’s 10 pilots returned to NAS Oceana while the remainder of the squadron personnel will arrive aboard Lincoln Tuesday, August 7.
Stay with NewsChannel 3 for updates.
