FLEET COMPOSITE SQUADRON TEN, VC-10/VCF-10 CHALLENGERS

VC-10 F-8D 147924 at Cecil on 5-25-67. Tail stripe was red bordered by black with white crosses. Shield colors are unknown. (Clay Janssen)

VC-10 was established when Util¬ity Squadron Ten (VU-10) was re¬designated VC-10 on 1 July 1965. Fleet Composite Squadron Ten re¬mains permanently based ashore at NAS Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. During the F-8 years the squadron had a threefold mission and was assigned two distinctly different types of aircraft to complete these missions.
One of the Challenger's missions was to provide service aircraft for Fleet Training Group GTMO, to help train the crews of ships undergoing training in the Caribbean area. Anoth¬er primary mission was to provide Commander Naval Base Guantanamo with a ready defense force of both air¬borne attack configured aircraft and trained ground defense personnel. The third mission was unique to GT¬MO and VC-10. Since VC-10 was the only squadron assigned to GTMO and that the base is located in a Commu-nist controlled country, the squadron was required to provide alert fighters in support of CINCLANT reconnais¬sance operations in the Eastern Cuban region.

VC-10 F-8C 147028 with a black Crusader shield bordered by red on the tail in 1968, (Vaught) VC-10 1973 squadron photo. Notice most of the pilots were wearing ball caps with the unofficial squadron designation of VCF-10, which denoted the squadron's special Air Defense Mission. (Ted Goldstone)

Fighter alert requirements de¬manded that four F-8 aircraft were assigned at various times to the oper¬ational control of Commander Naval Base, Guantanamo Bay. Two of these aircraft were normally in at least con¬dition five 24 hours a day. Two additional aircraft were assigned as necessary to support the special op¬erations. The fighter- alert conditions prescribed required combat loaded aircraft as follows:
CONDITION ONE: Two aircraft airborne within 2 minutes.
CONDITION TWO. Two aircraft airborne within 5 minutes.
CONDITION THREE. Two aircraft airborne within 15 minutes.
CONDITION FOUR. Two aircraft airborne within 30 minutes.
CONDITION FIVE. Two aircraft airborne within 60 minutes.

Periodically VCF-10 would conduct a exercise called DEFEX. fn this exercise the squadron was tasked with attacking NAS GTMO. As Ted Goldstone relates. it amounted to legalized flathatting. Where else could you roll-in and bomb the BOO and then return at 550 kts. to strafe the GEDUNKI

VC-10 Alert Bird armed with four Sidewinders and having the wing pylons installed, stands ready with steps extended and canopy open. "LTJG TED GOLDSTONE" is painted below the canopy.

In 1966 the squadron flew approximately 200 hours a year on actual or practice alert scrambles. In addition, alert birds averaged 335 hours per month in Condition three or above alert postures (50% of the time). The squadron would also launch combat loaded fighters to es¬cort VIPs arriving aboard military aircraft.
In February 1966, FLECOM¬PRON TEN transferred the last of its F-8B aircraft and became fully equipped with the F-80 and the US-2C. The Challengers were also awarded the CND Safety Award for 1966.
The F-8Ds were replaced in 1968 with F-8Cs and the "C" model was in turn replaced by F-8Ks in 1969. The F-8 Crusader was retired from VC-10 in 1974.

VC-10 F-8K 146968 at the Bradley Air Museum, Windsor Locks, Connecti¬cut, on 15 August 1975. The name under the canopy is ENS LARRY HEN¬DERSON. (Norm Taylor Collection) VCF-10 F-8Ks 145549 (#9), 147029 04), 145566 (#8), and 147010 (#6) in flight in 1974. Markings on the tail were a small black Griffin followed by a red-white-blue fin flash. The ventral fin started forward with red followed by white and blue. The wing stripes were red and blue (no white). Note that the top two Crusaders have VCF-10 painted on their fuselage. (Goldstone)

In the summer of 1974, VCF-10 had a pilot swipe the Crusader sword from VFP-63 and mail it to Homestead AFB, After a suitable wait to allow VFP-63 to go nuts looking for it, a ransom was agreed to. Dick Reditt, the VFP-63 pilot holding the real Crusader sword flew to Holmstead AFB with a load of target paint which had been swiped from VC-7. When the VFF-63 pilot first landed, LTJG Ted Goldstone (at left) and LT Bill Steiger (at right) tried to trade the wood¬en F-8K CRUSADER'S FOREVER sword for the paint.