Official VFA-34 Blue Blasters Skull Patch - Strike Fighter Squadron 34 (VFA-34) Blue Blasters F/A-18E Super Hornet Embroidered Skull Patch, Naval Air Station Oceana.Have gun, will travel — the Blue Blasters carry eight decades of carrier strike identity, a skull insignia approved by the Chief of Naval Operations in 1946, and a motto that still fits every deployment.VFA-34 traces its lineage to VF-20, commissioned in October 1943, with pilots who flew F6F Hellcats from USS Enterprise and saw combat at Leyte Gulf. The squadron earned its Blue Blasters name in 1957, drawing from its blue tail markings and nuclear strike mission. Reestablished in 1970 as an A-6 Intruder unit at NAS Oceana, the Blue Blasters distinguished themselves in Operations Prairie Fire and El Dorado Canyon in the 1980s, becoming the first Navy squadron to employ the Harpoon missile in combat. Redesignated VFA-34 on September 30, 1996, the squadron transitioned to the F/A-18C Hornet and flew combat missions over Bosnia, Iraq, and Afghanistan across multiple carrier deployments aboard USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, USS George Washington, and USS Abraham Lincoln. In June 2019, VFA-34 completed its transition to the F/A-18E Super Hornet, closing out its legacy Hornet era as the final Navy squadron to make that shift. Today the Blue Blasters fly as part of Carrier Air Wing 3, attached to USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, with tail code AC and radio callsign Joker. The skull design on this patch connects directly to that 1946 CNO-approved insignia, updated in 1999 to reflect the strike fighter mission and worn by crews across every major deployment since.Perfect For: Navy strike fighter veterans, VFA-34 Blue Blasters alumni, F/A-18 Super Hornet enthusiasts, Carrier Air Wing 3 collectors, NAS Oceana community members, deployment keepsake displays, shadow boxes, challenge coin and patch boards, reunion gifts, and anyone building a serious Navy carrier aviation collection around East Coast strike fighter heritage. It also suits families, maintainers, and supporters who want a patch that connects the skull insignia's World War II roots to modern Super Hornet operations without relying on generic aviation imagery.Blue Blasters heritage, stitched in the skull that has flown from carrier decks since 1946.
