80th Fighter Squadron The 80th Fighter Squadron ( traditionally nicknamed the " Headhunters " , and since 1971 also the " Juvats " ) is an F - 16 fighter squadron of the United States Air Force , currently part of the 8th Operations Group of the 8th Fighter Wing , and stationed at Kunsan Air Base , Republic of Korea . The 80th has served in combat operations in World War II , the Korean War , and the Vietnam War . History . Operational history . The Headhunters ' history began only one month after Pearl Harbor , as the squadron shipped out to fight in the Pacific Theater . The Squadron was first activated on 10 January 1942 at Mitchel Field in New York . Originally designated as a pursuit squadron , they were redesignated in May 1942 as a fighter squadron . Attached to the 8th Fighter Group . One of the early squadron commanders , Edward " Porky " Cragg named the Squadron " The Headhunters " after the local New Guinean Headhunter tribes who hated the Japanese and helped to rescue downed pilots . He also commissioned a crew chief , M / Sgt . Yale Saffro , who was once offered a job to work for Walt Disney as a cartoonist but turned it down , to design the 80th ' s patch . ( This original patch design can be seen , and has been officially sanctioned by the Office of Air Force Heraldry for current uniform wear . ) The squadron saw action against the Japanese in the Pacific including deployments in Australia , New Guinea , the Schouten Islands , Morotai , Leyte , Mindoro , and Japan . It was later redesignated as the 80th Fighter Squadron , Single Engine , on 14 January 1947 , the squadron reactivated on 20 February 1947 at Itazuke AB , Japan , and was assigned to the 8th Fighter ( later , 8th Fighter - Bomber ) Group . It would undergo a number of different attachments over the next few years . It was attached to 49th Fighter - Bomber Group from 11 August to 25 September 1950 ; the 51st Fighter - Interceptor Group from 25 September to 27 October 1950 ; the Twentieth Air Force from 21 October 1954 to 10 February 1955 ; the 49th Fighter - Bomber Group from 10 February 1955 to 18 October 1956 ; and the 8th Fighter - Bomber Wing from 1 February to 30 September 1957 ) . From 1947 to 1950 , the squadron would operate the P - 51 , before switching to the F - 80 Shooting Star in 1950 . With their conversion to jet engines , the headhunters were redesignated as the 80th Fighter Squadron , Jet , on 1 January 1950 . Later that month , they would become the 80th fighter - bomber squadron . The outfit served in the Korean war in June and July 1953 while mostly flying the F - 86 . In 1956 , the Headhunters would begin flying the F - 100 . Following the squadron ' s engagement in the Korean War , the 80th was tasked with providing air defense in Japan and Korea ( 1953 – 1954 ) , in Okinawa ( 1954 – 1956 ) , and in Japan and Korea ( 1956 – 1971 ) . In 1963 , the Headhunters began flying the F - 105 Thunderchief . In June 1964 , they were attached to the 41st Air Division . They remained with the 41st for less than a year , moving to the 6441st Tactical Fighter Wing of the 2nd Air Division in April 1965 . The squadron conducted temporary duty ( TDY ) combat operations in Southeast Asia from December 1964 to June 1965 . During the conflict , headhunters were charged with attacking targets such as the Hai Nguyen Steel Plant , Haipong storage facilities , rail lines , and the Doumer Bridge . During their time serving in the Vietnam War , the 80th conducted 7 , 384 combat missions in Southeast Asia , including 2 , 657 combat missions directly over North Vietnam , for a total of 17 , 104 total hours of active operations . For their role in the conflict , 80th pilots received 7 Silver Star s , 64 Distinguished Flying Cross es , and 426 Air Medal s . The 80th earned one battle honor , the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross ( with Palm ) , and four Air Force Outstanding Unit Citations . " . In the winter of 1967 - 1968 , now assigned to the 347th Tactical Fighter Wing , the 80th began transition to the F - 4C Phantom II . In January 1968 its few available aircrews and aircraft ( most of its F - 105 assets were in the process of augmenting units in Thailand and the F - 4Cs at Yokota were not yet operational ) were sent to Korea in reaction to the North Korean seizure of the USS " Pueblo " . During the summer of 1968 the 80th TFS became the first PACAF squadron to assign a contingent of experienced F - 4 aircraft commanders and electronic warfare officers ( EWOs ) as F - 4C Wild Weasel crews . The first fully modified F - 4C Wild Weasel aircraft arrived in April 1969 . Between 1968 and 1971 the primary mission of the 80th TFS was to deploy on a rotating basis to Osan AB , Korea , providing a nuclear strike alert posture against targets in the Soviet Union , North Korea , and China , maintaining several aircraft on fifteen - minute alert . It also trained on conventional weapons . In 1970 all PACAF F - 4 Wild Weasel crews transferred into the 80th TFS . On 15 February 1971 , the 80th TFS redeployed from Yokota to Kunsan AB , Korea , while temporarily assigned to Detachment 1 , 475th Tactical Fighter Wing to begin the process of inactivation , with its personnel and aircraft transferred to the 35th TFS . Lt Gen Jay T . Robbins , a former 80th FS commander and World War II ace who was Vice Commander of Tactical Air Command , rescinded the inactivation and had the 80th TFS transferred to the 3rd Tactical Fighter Wing , in Korea . There it was re - staffed with personnel from the 391st Tactical Fighter Squadron , which was inactivated on 28 February . The 391st TFS ' s insignia had included the motto " Audentes Fortuna Juvat " , which subsequently became the " Headhunters " motto . On the 391st TFS sleeve patch , the scroll displaying the motto was such that when the patch was ripped off , the word " Juvat " was left in place . The former 391st aircrew did so with the consent of the 80th TFS commander at the time , Lt Col Soloman Harp III , who named himself the first " Juvat " . The motto remained unofficial until approved on 9 October 1986 . In its history , the 80th FS has recorded 251 total air to air victories . The 80th TFS scored one air - to - air victory by an F - 105 pilot , but an assigned officer detached at the time to the 13th TFS in Thailand , Captain Jeffrey Feinstein , was credited with five victories and ace status as an F - 4 weapons system officer in 1972 . Today , the 80th flies the F - 16CM and is stationed at Kunsan Air Base , Republic of Korea ( ROK ) .