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Naval Air Station (NAS) Fallon, located 60 miles east of Reno in the Nevada high desert, is the center for the U. S. Navy’s carrier air wing weapons and strike tactics training. Following the 1983 Lebanon raid by Sixth Fleet carrier squadrons, which resulted in the loss of two aircraft, the
death of one pilot and temporary captivity of a bombardier/navigator, the Navy reevaluated its pre-deployment air wing training program. The main result of this study was the establishment in 1984 of the U. S. Navy Strike Warfare Center at NAS Fallon to improve strike tactics.
Today, each air wing’s turnaround training cycle includes a three-week deployment to Fallon to sharpen its skills in weapons delivery and strike warfare. During Air Wing One’s prede ployment strike training it flew more than 1,100 sorties in 13 days of flyin?’ dropping more than 350 tons of ordnance on Fallon’s sophisticated target complex. CVW-1 concentrated on inte’ grated air wing tactics while participat' ing in “Strike’s” programs of close alf support (CAS), overland air superiority training (OAST) and fleet integrated support training (FIST), as well as strike rescue, formerly known as corn- bat search and rescue.
Air Wing One was the first carrier wing to deploy with the F/A-18C, the latest fleet model of the Hornet. Two squadrons (VFA-82 and VFA-86) employ the versatile strike fighter. VF- 102’s and VF-33’s Grumman F-14A Tomcats comprised CVW-l’s fighter cover, while VA-85 provided medium attack all-weather capability with its Grumman A-6E Intruders and inflight refueling with the KA-6D tanker version. ASW chores were handled by VS-32’s S-3A Vikings and HS-ll’s SH-3H Sea Kings. VAQ-137’s EA-6b Prowlers provided airborne electronic countermeasures, and VAW-123’s £-- Hawkeyes handled command and com trol airborne early warning.
One of the Navy’s two oldest formally established air wings, CVW-1 was formed as Ranger Air Group 1 July 1938, along with Saratoga Air Group, which is currently designated Air Wing Three. During the ensuing j years, CVW-1 was redesignated sever3 times (CVG-4, CVAG-1, CVG-1) before receiving its present title on 20 December 1963. It is the co-owner 0 the title as the Navy’s oldest air wing^
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Proceedings / September