VF - 111 Fighter Squadron 111 ( VF - 111 ) , also known as the Sundowners , was the designation held by two U . S . Navy fighter squadrons from 1942 to 1995 . The first squadron , initially designated VF - 11 , served as an active Pacific Fleet Fighter Squadron until its disestablishment in 1959 . At that time , another squadron then assumed the designation until its disestablishment in 1995 . In November 2006 , VFC - 13 Detachment Key West was redesignated as VFC - 111 , taking on the ' Sundowner ' insignia and callsign . History . 3 distinct Navy squadrons have called themselves ‘ Sundowners ’ . The U . S . Navy frequently has given the same designation to two or more aviation units , leading to lasting confusion . Officially , the US Navy does not recognize a direct lineage with disestablished squadrons if a new squadron is formed with the same designation . Often , the new squadron will assume the nickname , insignia , and traditions of the earlier squadrons . 1940s . The First VF - 111 . The 1st VF - 111 began operating as VF - 11 at NAS North Island California on October 10 , 1942 , and on October 23 was on its way to Hawaii with Grumman F4F Wildcat s . To epitomize its spirit and tactical superiority over the Japanese , the squadron decided it would be called the ' Sundowners ' and its insignia ( which persists to this day ) depicts two Wildcats shooting down a Rising Sun . From April to July 1943 VF - 11 downed 55 enemy aircraft in aerial combat at Guadalcanal . After return to the U . S . and re - equipping with F6F Hellcat s , VF - 11 deployed in in October 1944 . From then until February 1945 the squadron engaged in strike and air - to - air combat missions resulting in the shoot down of 102 enemy aircraft with dozens more destroyed on the ground . As a direct result of its combat record , the squadron was awarded the Presidential Unit Citation . Two postwar redesignations occurred : VF - 11 became VF - 11A in 1946 and VF - 111 in July 1948 . In 1949 the Sundowners transitioned to the F9F - 2 Panther jet . 1950s . On November 9 , 1950 , early in the Korean War , Lieutenant Commander William T . Amen scored the first combat jet - on - jet kill in aviation history , downing a Soviet MiG - 15 while flying a Panther from the . Two more Korean cruises were made in in 1951 - 52 , then and in 1953 . After Korea , VF - 111 flew the F9F - 8 Cougar and the FJ - 3 Fury for three deployments to the Western Pacific aboard the carriers , USS " Wasp " ( CVA - 18 ) , and . VF - 111 was then disestablished on 19 January 1959 . The Second VF - 111 . The second squadron to be called " Sundowners " started as Attack Squadron 156 ( VA - 156 ) . VA - 156 , originally known as the " Iron Tigers " , was established on 4 June 1956 and flew the F11F - 1 Tiger . VA - 156 was assigned to CVW - 11 and made a single deployment aboard to the Western Pacific . The day after the disestablishment of the first VF - 111 , VA - 156 assumed VF - 111 ' s designation and nickname on 20 January 1959 . 1960s . In 1961 the Sundowners ' traditional mascot , " Omar , " was conceived by squadron enlisted men to mark the transition to the supersonic F - 8D Crusader . The triangular stick figure appeared on VF - 111 aircraft and squadron spaces . During the ‘ 60s , VF - 111 flew four different versions of the Crusader ( F - 8C / D / E / H ) and was deployed aboard the carriers , , , and . During the Vietnam War the Sundowners were based at NAS Miramar , California with the squadron making seven deployments to Southeast Asia , flying 12 , 500 combat sorties . In 1967 - 68 , VF - 111 deployed a less - than - full - strength detachment , " Omar ' s Orphans " , from . Nominally an anti - submarine carrier in the Atlantic Fleet , " Intrepid " made three deployments with CVW - 10 to Vietnam as an attack carrier . During the 1967 - 1968 deployment , Lieutenant Tony Nargi shot down a MiG - 21 while flying an F - 8C Crusader . 1970s . In 1971 , VF - 111 joined CVW - 15 and transitioned to the F - 4B Phantom II . On 6 March 1972 , while flying from the , VF - 111 crew LT Garry Weigand and LTJG Bill Freckleton engaged and shot down a MiG - 17 near Quang Lang Airfield in North Vietnam . Their aircraft , F - 4B , NL 201 , BuNo 153019 , was restored to the original paint scheme by the current Sundowner squadron and is displayed on a pedestal just inside the main gate at NAS Key West , Florida . The squadron later transitioned to the F - 4N version of the Phantom , but was scheduled to turn these in for the F - 4J . In 1975 both VF - 111 and VF - 51 received six F - 4Js but , due to operational considerations regarding their next deployment , the two units reverted to the " N " model . In late 1976 through early 1977 , VF - 111 made an Atlantic and Mediterranean deployment , a rare event for a Pacific Fleet squadron , with CVW - 15 aboard for that carrier ' s final cruise . The squadron returned to NAS Miramar in April 1977 and began transition to the F - 14 Tomcat . By October 1978 , VF - 111 had fully transitioned to the Block 100 model F - 14A . VF - 111 subsequently deployed with CVW - 15 aboard USS " Kitty Hawk " from May 1979 to February 1980 , a deployment which was extended from its originally planned end date in early December 1979 due to the November 1979 seizure of the American Embassy in Teheran , Iran . During this period , the squadron operated from the " Kitty Hawk " in the Indian Ocean south of the Iranian coast until relieved by USS " Nimitz " and the squadrons of CVW - 8 . 1980s . In addition to its " extended " deployment during the first two months of 1980 , VF - 111 deployed a final time on " Kitty Hawk " from April to October 1981 . In October 1983 , VF - 111 returned to its home station of NAS Miramar following a world cruise with CVW - 15 on the maiden deployment of USS " Carl Vinson " . In the spring of 1986 VF - 111 began another work - up cycle , completing a series of training evolution and exercises in preparation for their June 1988 Pacific / Indian Ocean deployment . VF - 111 ' s seventeen month work - up was capped by FLEETEX 88 - 2 , the first time since World War II that a carrier , " Carl Vinson " and a battleship , the operated as a combined Battle Fleet . VF - 111 ' s 1988 deployment began in June and ended in December . It included operations in the Northern / Western Pacific , Arabian Sea , and Indian Ocean , providing support of tanker escorts in the Persian Gulf and included a transit of the Bering Sea , the fourth such transit in four deployments . In preparation for deployment in 1990 , VF - 111 deployed aboard " Carl Vinson " from September to November 1989 as participants in PACEX 89 . This exercise had the Sundowners operating in the Bering Sea , the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan as a part of the largest naval exercise since World War II . 1990s . The Sundowners next deployed from February to July 1990 . VF - 111 received the 1990 Boola Boola award for success in exercise missile firings , as well as the 1990 Tactical Air Reconnaissance Pod System ( TARPS ) derby , awarded to the best tactical air reconnaissance squadron on the West Coast . On 15 October 1991 , VF - 111 returned to USS " Kitty Hawk " for her two month cruise from NAS Norfolk , Virginia " around the horn " of South America to NAS North Island , California following the carrier ' s comprehensive , multi - year Service Life Extension Program ( SLEP ) at Philadelphia Naval Shipyard . Multi - national exercises with Venezuela , Argentina and Chile were conducted in various air - to - air and strike scenarios . The Sundowners returned to NAS Miramar in December 1991 . In 1993 , VF - 111 deployed to the Pacific , Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf and flew in support of Operation Restore Hope and Operation Southern Watch . In 1994 VF - 111 deployed again to the Pacific . Following this deployment , the squadron was disestablished in March 1995 as part of post - Cold War force reductions of the Navy ' s F - 14 community , with its aircraft reassigned to other F - 14 squadrons . Other aces who scored kills with the Sundowners were : Sundowner Aces . LT William N . Leonard , LTJG William J . Masoner , and LTJG John A . Zink . Popular Media . In 1985 , VF - 111 was one of several NAS Miramar based squadrons to participate in the filming of the film " Top Gun " . Some VF - 111 and VF - 51 aircraft were repainted in fictitious squadron markings for the film . To be able to film the sequences , the F - 14s were fitted with cameras mounted in pods attached to the underbelly Phoenix pallets and the under wing pylons , as well as using ground mounted cameras . Also , one of the fictional RIOs in the film , played by Clarence Gilyard , uses the callsign " Sundown " and wears a VF - 111 styled helmet and squadron patch on his flight suit .