Patrol Bombing Squadron 145
Active	15 July 1943 – 18 June 1945
Country	United States of America
Branch	United States Navy
Type	squadron
Role	Maritime patrol
Engagements	World War II
Aircraft flown
Patrol	PV-1

VPB-145 was a Patrol Bombing Squadron of the U.S. Navy. The squadron was established as Bombing Squadron 145 (VB-145) on 15 July 1943, redesignated Patrol Bombing Squadron 145 (VPB-145) on 1 October 1944 and disestablished on 18 June 1945.^[1]

• 15 July – 14 August 1943: VB-145 was established at NAS DeLand, Florida, under the operational control of FAW-12, as a medium bombing squadron flying the PV-1 Ventura. The majority of pilots assigned had never flown a twin-engine aircraft. Fortunately, nearly all of the enlisted personnel came from HEDRON-12 and were familiar with the idiosyncrasies of the Ventura airframe. On 29 July, Lieutenant (jg) J. L. Broady crashed on the runway at NAS DeLand during a training flight, killing himself, his copilot and one passenger. The crash served to emphasize the importance of wearing full flight clothing despite the heat. The pilot and passenger had been able to exit the burning aircraft, but had earlier stripped to the waist due to the heat in the cockpit. Both died from severe burns 12 hours after the crash. General ground training and familiarization flight training in the Venturas continued through 14 August when the squadron was sent to NAAF Boca Chica, Florida, for advanced Anti-submarine warfare (ASW) training and shakedown.
• 16 September 1943: VB-145 deployed to NAF Natal, Brazil, under the operational control of FAW-16. Routine patrols, convoy coverage and ASW missions were assigned to the squadron over the offshore waters of the Caribbean convoy lanes. Patrols were coordinated with VB-107, a PB4Y-1 Liberator squadron assigned to NAF Natal. Shortly after arrival, the squadron sent its aircraft, two or three at a time, to NAF Recife, Brazil, where the fleet air wing had its principal maintenance facilities. The aircraft were stripped of all unnecessary gear; armor plate was repositioned from the back to the bottom of the aircraft to protect against U-boat anti-aircraft (AA) fire; bomb bays were equipped to carry six 350-pound bombs and dorsal turrets were locked in the forward-firing position to supplement the nose guns when attacking surfaced submarines.
• 1 November 1943: A detachment of aircraft was sent to NAF Fernando de Noronha, 209 miles (336 km) northeast of Natal, Brazil, for barrier sweeps. Aircraft did not remain on the island throughout the deployment, only when intelligence indicated that a submarine might be making a transit homeward.
• 13 November 1943: Lieutenant E. M. Jones and his crew were forced to ditch at sea after their radio compass failed. Jones had taken the wrong bearing until too much fuel had been consumed to make landfall. After the squadron searched the area for six days, hope was given up of finding the crew. Finally, on the seventh day, the crew drifted ashore and was saved.
• 21 June 1944: VB-145 aircraft were sent to NAF Recife for retrofitting with HVAR rocket launching rails. Rocket training was then undertaken by all flight crews at NAF Maceio, Brazil, firing live projectiles at offshore targets.
• 27 August 1944: Lieutenant (jg) C. W. Bleicher and his crew were returning from a patrol and lost their bearings while en route to base due to radio compass failure. With only a few minutes of fuel left, the pilot set the Ventura down in shallow water off the beach approximately 70 miles (110 km) south of Fortaleza, Brazil. Only one crew member was injured in the crash and all exited the aircraft safely. An Army B-25 spotted the wreckage 10 minutes later and the crew was eventually rescued.
• 5–14 September 1944: A four-aircraft detachment was sent to RAF Ascension Island. The Venturas had been specially equipped with bomb bay tanks to extend their range on patrols.
• 5 December 1944: A three-aircraft detachment was sent to NAF Aratu, Bahia, Brazil. It returned to NAF Natal on 23 January 1945.
• 1 February 1945: VPB-145 was relieved at NAF Natal by VPB-126 and sent to NAF San Julián, Cuba. The squadron remained in Cuba through 28 February, conducting channel patrols and convoy coverage.
• 2 March 1945: VPB-145 was relieved and returned to NAS New York, New York, arriving there on 9 March 1945. The squadron had no sooner arrived than orders were received to proceed to NAS Brunswick, Maine, under the operational control of FAW-9. There the squadron was assigned patrols over the northern convoy lanes.
• 24 March 1945: Lieutenant Jack R. Kreigh and his crew made a crash landing at the end of the runway at NAS Brunswick, after completely running out of fuel after getting lost on their first operational patrol. The aircraft was demolished after hitting several tree stumps, but the crew survived with only minor injuries.
• 1–18 June 1945: All squadron operations were suspended upon receiving word that VPB-145 was to be disestablished. From 9 to 14 June, squadron aircrews ferried the squadron's aircraft to NAS Clinton, Oklahoma, for storage. On 18 June, VPB-145 was disestablished at NAS Quonset Point, Rhode Island.^[1]

The squadron was assigned the following aircraft, effective on the dates shown:^[1]

• PV-1 - August 1944

The squadron was assigned to these home ports, effective on the dates shown:^[1]

• NAS DeLand, Florida - 15 July 1943
• NAAF Boca Chica, Florida - 14 August 1943
• NAF Natal, Brazil - 16 September 1943
• NAF San Julián, Cuba - 1 February 1945
• NAS Brunswick, Maine - 9 March 1945
• NAS Quonset Point, Rhode Island - 1 June 1945

• Maritime patrol aircraft
• List of inactive United States Navy aircraft squadrons
• List of United States Navy aircraft squadrons
• List of squadrons in the Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons
• History of the United States Navy

This article incorporates text from the public domain Dictionary of American Naval Aviation Squadrons.

v t e  United States Navy
Category
Leadership	Secretary of the Navy Under Secretary of the Navy Chief of Naval Operations Vice Chief of Naval Operations Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy 4-star admirals 3-star admirals 1864–1959 2000–2009 2010–2019 2020–present 2-star admirals House Armed Services Subcommittee on Seapower and Projection Forces Senate Subcommittee on Seapower
Structure	Navy Navy Reserve Fleet Marine Force Expeditionary Combat Command Merchant Marine Units Active ships Future ships Aircraft wings Aircraft squadrons Carrier strike group Installations Naval Observatory Master jet base Operating forces Fleet Forces Command Commander Pacific Fleet Commander Naval Forces Europe – Naval Forces Africa Naval Forces Central Command Naval Forces Southern Command Naval Special Warfare Command Naval Reserve Forces Operational Test and Evaluation Force Naval Network Warfare Command Military Sealift Command Shore Naval Sea Systems Command Naval Air Systems Command Naval Facilities Engineering Systems Command Naval Supply Systems Command Naval Information Warfare Systems Command Fleet Cyber Command Naval Academy Naval Education and Training Command Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command Office of Naval Intelligence Naval Aviation Warfighting Development Center Naval Legal Service Command Naval Observatory Naval Safety Center Bureau of Naval Personnel Chief of Naval Personnel Bureau of Medicine and Surgery Navy Installations Command Navy Working Capital Fund Fleets Second Fleet Third Fleet Fourth Fleet Fifth Fleet Sixth Fleet Seventh Fleet Tenth Fleet Ships A–B C D–F G–H I–K L M N–O P Q–R S T–V W–Z Aircraft carriers Airships Amphibious warfare ships Auxiliaries Battleships Cruisers Destroyers Destroyer escorts Escort carriers Frigates Mine warfare vessels Monitors Patrol vessels Registered civilian vessels Sailing frigates Steam frigates Steam gunboats Ships of the line Sloops of war Submarines Torpedo boats Torpedo retrievers Unclassified miscellaneous vessels Yard and district craft
Personnel and training	People Officers Insignia Designators Enlisted Rates Ratings Classification Personnel Chaplain Corps Chief Deputy Chief Explosive ordnance disposal Medical Corps Dental Corps Nurse Corps Medical Service Corps Supply Corps Civil Engineer Corps JAG Corps JAG DJAG NCIS Boatswain's mates Hospital corpsman Naval Aviator SEALs Seabees Master-at-arms Operations specialist SWCCs Hispanic sailors Training Recruit Officer Candidate School STA-21 NROTC Naval University System (Naval War College, Naval Postgraduate School, Naval Academy, Naval Community College, Marine Corps University) BESS BFTT CNATT COMPTUEX NAWCTSD AIM Naval Chaplaincy School Naval Hospital Corps School Naval Justice School United States Armed Forces School of Music Navy Senior Enlisted Academy Navy Supply Corps School Nuclear Power School JMTC TOPGUN USNTPS Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
Equipment	Uniforms Awards and decorations Badges Current fleet Future fleet Reserve fleet Current aircraft Weapons Naval reactors
History and traditions	History "Anchors Aweigh" Blue Angels Continental Navy Ensign Fleet bands Fleet Week Jack Line-crossing ceremony National Museum Navy Band Ceremonial Guard Navy Flag Navy Hymn Navy Memorial Navy service numbers Navy Weeks Revolt of the Admirals Sailor's Creed Ship commissioning Ship decommissioning Ship naming conventions Tingey House USS Constitution WAVES Wetting-down United States battleship retirement debate