VP - 31 VP - 31 , Patrol Squadron 31 was a maritime patrol squadron of the United States Navy . It was established on 30 June 1960 to train replacement aircrew and maintenance personnel . It was disestablished on 1 November 1993 . Mission . The primary mission of the squadron was training replacement aircrew and maintenance personnel for all Pacific Fleet patrol squadrons , administrative control of the sonobuoy buildup shop and all class D maintenance for all patrol squadrons on North Island . Limited training was begun soon after the squadron ’ s establishment , but it was not until the fall of 1960 that a complete staff of 20 officers and 300 enlisted personnel were engaged in full - scale training operations with an inventory of two Lockheed Neptune P2V - 5FS aircraft , two P2V - 7S , and one Douglas R5D Skymaster . Insignia . The only insignia for VP - 31 was approved on 25 July 1962 , and was selected to represent the ASW training program used to educate patrol of FAW - 14 . The central figure of the design was a submarine at the focal point of four beams from on high . Above the submarine was a magic lamp from which issued a wisp of smoke . The lamp signified the squadron ’ s original nickname , the Genies . The design was circular , with a scroll at the bottom containing the designation Patrol Squadron Thirty One . Colors : outline of design , lamp and beams , silver and gold ; lamp and submarine trim , red ; central portion of beams , cream ; background of design and submarine , deep blue . The squadron ' s nickname was Genies from 1962 – 1971 and Black Lightnings from 1971 – 1993 . History . 30 Jun 1960 : VP - 31 was established at Naval Air Station North Island , San Diego , California . The squadron flew UF - 1s ( HU - 16s ) for a short time in the early 1960s . Nov 1961 : The squadron ’ s responsibilities were expanded to include training foreign personnel transitioning to the P2V - 7 . Seventy - two members of the No . 10 Squadron RAAF were among the first foreign students to be assigned for training in this aircraft . Two Grumman UF - 1 / SHU - 16B Albatross seaplanes were assigned to VP - 31 and converted to ASW specifications for training air force personnel from Norway , Chile , Colombia , Peru , and Spain . 4 Jan 1963 : VP - 31 Detachment Alpha was established at Naval Air Station Moffett Field Its primary mission was to train pilots and aircrewmen for the advanced ASW aircraft , the Lockheed P - 3 Orion . The squadron ’ s P - 3 aircraft averaged 8 , 600 flying hours a year in training missions . 8 Jan 1966 : VP - 31 Detachment Alpha moved from Hangar Three into historic Hangar One at NAS Moffett Field . Hangar One , now a Naval Memorial site , was built in April 1933 as a home for the Navy ’ s largest dirigibles , Macon ( ZRS - 5 ) her sister ship , Akron ( ZRS - 4 ) . The vast structure provided much needed space for the constantly expanding operations of the squadron . 1 Jul 1966 : Detachment Alpha at NAS Moffett Field , Calif . , was renamed Detachment Moffett . The parent squadron remained at NAS North Island , San Diego , Calif . 1 Jan 1967 : Detachment Moffett became the parent element of VP - 31 , and the unit at North Island became Detachment North Island . This changed occurred to accommodate the increasing numbers of students receiving training on the P - 3 airframe . Detachment North Island discontinued training on the Martin P - 5 Marlin when the Navy ceased seaplane operations in 1967 , but continued to provide training to crews on the P - 2 Neptunes until its disestablishment in 1970 . 6 Mar 1969 : All six crewmembers of the squadron ’ s P - 3A , BuNo . 152765 , RP - 07 died when it crashed at NAS Lemoore , Calif . , at the end of a practice ground control approach ( GCA ) landing . 1 Jan 1970 : VP - 31 ’ s Detachment North Island was disestablished , having trained over 2 , 000 pilots , 700 Naval Flight Officers , and 10 , 600 aircrewmen / maintenance personnel . 7 Jul 1971 : The Black Lightnings received CNO approval for the P - 3A / B Fleet Replacement Aviation Maintenance Program ( FRAMP ) , designed to train aircrew and ground personnel in the transition from older model P - 3 Orions to the newer versions . 26 May 1972 : A VP - 31 P - 3A , BuNo . 152155 , failed to return to NAS Moffett Field at the completion of a routine training flight . Search operations by Navy , Army , Air Force and Civil Air Patrol aircraft continued for seven days , but no trace of the missing aircraft was ever found . Two crewmen , three personnel under instruction and three observers were listed as missing and presumed dead . Jun 1974 : VP - 31 was tasked with training Iranian navy aircrews on the specially configured version of the Orion , the P - 3F , that would be used by that country ’ s military for maritime patrol . Flight training / familiarization was completed in December , with all aspects of the support / maintenance training syllabus completed by 6 June 1975 . Jan 1984 : VP - 31 began the transition of Pacific Fleet patrol squadrons to the P - 3 aircraft with enhanced avionics configurations . In one 15 - month period , the squadron received 22 aircraft for extensive avionics modifications . In the years following , VP - 31 averaged 16 to 18 Orion modifications every 12 months . 1 Nov 1993 : VP - 31 was disestablished due to the closure of NAS Moffett Field and the consolidation of training resources into one VP training squadron , VP - 30 , based at NAS Jacksonville , Fla .