Fighter-Bomber Squadron 5 (VBF-5) WW2

Fighter-Bomber Squadron 5 (VBF-5) was born from the kamikaze crisis that reshaped carrier aviation. The Navy needed more fighters on every carrier to defend the fleet, but still needed the ability to strike ground targets. The answer was the VBF squadron,fighter-bomber units flying the Vought F4U Corsair, capable of shooting down enemy aircraft and delivering 4,000 pounds of ordnance in the same mission.

VBF-5 & USS Franklin

USS Franklin (CV-13), "Big Ben," survived the most catastrophic attack on any carrier that wasn't sunk during the war. On March 19, 1945, a single Japanese dive bomber placed two 550-pound bombs into Franklin's crowded hangar deck, detonating armed and fueled aircraft. The resulting chain of explosions killed 807 men and wounded 487,the heaviest casualties suffered by any surviving US warship. Despite being dead in the water and listing 13 degrees, her crew saved the ship, and Franklin sailed 12,000 miles back to New York under her own power.

VBF-5 deployed aboard USS Franklin (CV-13) as part of Carrier Air Group 5 in 1945, flying combat missions during Pacific operations. The squadron operated alongside VF-5 and other air group units, providing the flexible combat power that carrier task forces needed in the final campaigns of World War II.

The Corsair

With 12,571 airframes produced between 1942 and 1953, the Corsair had the longest production run of any American piston-engine fighter. Its 2,250-hp engine gave it a top speed of 417 mph,faster than any carrier fighter in the war. The Navy's VBF (fighter-bomber) squadrons introduced in January 1945 chose the Corsair specifically for its ability to combine air superiority with heavy ground attack, carrying four times the bomb load of an F6F Hellcat.

Carry the history. VBF-5 t-shirts, hoodies, and heritage gifts,built for those who remember what these squadrons gave.