Almansur: Hijacking the Vagabonds

HIJACKING THE VAGABONDS OF VF-84

The brass sunk the Jolly Rogers on 15 April 1959. That was the day in which VF-61 was disestablished. The squadron had been promised the F8U Crusader, but got the death kiss instead. The tradition of the Bones was about to become extinct.

But what was about to happen was one of the greatest acts of piracy ever witnessed aboard the ships and boats of the US Navy.

VF-61's last CO, CDR R.T.Hopper, received new orders: he was to fly the F8U-2 as the new Commanding Officer of VF-84, starting on 17 April. Many of his pilots followed him on that transition.

VF-84 went by the name of Vagabonds, ever since being established on 1 July 1955, flying first the North American FJ-3M Fury, and then, from early 1959, the Vought F8U-2 Crusader. VF-84 was the third squadron to carry that number. The first was Roger Hedrick's WW II outfit from the Bunker Hill that went by the name of Wolf Gang. The second was Lake Champlain's fighter bomber squadron, the Sidewinders, redesignated VA-86 when it got the dubious distinction of being given the F7U Cutlass to fly. These squadrons were neither officially related, nor did they share a name or tradition.

The Vagabonds were promptly persuaded that they should start waving the Jolly Rogers' flag. A vote was taken, reputedly by a show of hands under the watchful eye of the skipper. Then the official request to take the name, insignia and traditions of the Jolly Rogers was submitted to the Chief of Naval Operations.

History does not record the identity of the creative writer that was charged with the duty of making a case for the taking of the piratical traditions, but a cock and bull story of monumental proportions was born.

It was claimed that a young pilot, ENS Jack Ernie, flew with Roger Hedrick's VF-84 back in WW II. This intrepid aviator was shot down and lost over Okinawa, and made a poignant final transmission with a plea to be "remembered with the Jolly Rogers". His remains were later found, and given back to his family. Jack Ernie's family was so moved by the research being made by our pirate writer that they decided to present Jack's own skull and femurs to the new VF-84.

It might not be entirely coincidental that the CNO gave his approval to the change on April's fools day, 1960.

Ever since, ENS Jack Ernie's bones have been displayed at the ready room of the Jolly Rogers, and the "passing of the Bones" became a noble tradition performed by every outgoing CO to the new one. His name has been on the official squadron rooster and precedence list, and has been written under the canopies of many F-4 Phantoms and F-14 Tomcats.

Sea Stories don't come any better than this. Poor ol' Vagabonds didn't have a chance in hell.

The F8U-2 (F-8C) Crusaders were flown by the Jolly Rogers from 1960 to 1964. They were part of CVG-7, aboard the USS Independence, taking part in the blockade of Cuba during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Patches and other decorations featuring the Bones were everywhere... except on the planes. The fiery intakes and chevroned fuselage bands of the Vagabonds adorned VF-84 F-8Cs to the end. They didn't carry as much as a small pirate flag on the fuselage, a fact for which there has been no adequate explanation.

Since leaving the carrier decks on the F3H Demons of VF-61 in 1959, to the time they returned in force on the tails of VF-84's F-4B Phantom IIs in 1964, the Bones were absent from naval aircraft.