From the President,

I ask you to stop and consider how much has changed with the squadrons across the years that many of us have been associated with in the VQ community.  Many of the changes have been fairly major as far as impact on normal operations.  The P4M’s departed slightly before my arrival in VQ-1, but I can imagine the stalwarts mumbling about what is that big lumbering triple tailed thing going to do when MIGs come out to play.  What a surprise the EP3B was when it showed up on the scene logging nearly 300 flight hours every month.  That was roughly the number of man-hours the reciprocating mechanics spent on the R3350 engines between flights! 
Some of the changes were more subtle, but had a major impact on the people involved.  In the middle sixties the Navy was introduced to a new aircraft maintenance concept called the 3M system.  The VQ’s were the very last Navy units to make the conversion and even then it was a modified entry into the program because the squadrons were unique and the system didn’t fit. For the most part, intermediate level support didn’t exist for the one-of-a-kind systems employed by the VQ squadrons.  There were many naysayers who said, “It will never work here”.  You know, they may have been right.  I’m not sure it ever did work.  It certainly didn’t make things easier and millions of man-hours were needlessly expended providing data to a system that never used it.
Mandated, over-reaching inclusions and exclusions were implemented for Fitness Reports and Evaluations.    Hard working shop chiefs and department heads all of a sudden had homework every night and had to become a Hemmingway quality author to take care of his (or her [another change]) troops.  A couple of squadrons labeled VQ-5 and VQ-6 came and went and if you blinked, you missed them.  Some of us did multiple tours in one or the other or in both of the squadrons.  I imagine leaving one Q, going away for a tour elsewhere and then going to the other Q would really give your nervous system a jolt.   And… Stop and think how many of us have lost at least one close friend while serving in a VQ squadron.

Yet, there is one thing that throughout time has never changed and hopefully never will.  That is the unyielding spirit of the group. I mean this in the sense of unity, the dedication to mission, and the faith we rested in the hands of our crewmates.  That may be the reason that every year, a couple hundred people that we recognized as the most talented professionals we’d ever met, will get together in almost any location throughout the United States to rekindle the warmth and friendship we held together so many years ago.  I have absolute faith that this same sense of camaraderie will carry on for many years to come.
See you at the next reunion,

Larry
Larry Brosh
President, VQ Association