VFA 101 Grim Reapers being deactivated

https://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/20181210/navy-f-35-unit-at-eglin-to-be-deactivated

EGLIN AFB — The Navy’s F-35C squadron at Eglin Air Force Base is being deactivated, as its personnel and aircraft are slated to be combined with a second squadron at a Naval Air Station in California.

The move is being made at the request of the commanders of the U.S. Pacific Fleet and the Naval Air Force, according to a Navy announcement.

The squadron, VFA-101, better known as the “Grim Reapers,” has been at Eglin since 2011, where it has trained pilots and maintenance personnel for the F-35C. The F-35C is the “carrier variant” of the F-35 Lightning II stealth fighter jet, designed specifically for operating from aircraft carriers.

The transition of the Grim Reapers from Eglin to Naval Air Station Lemoore, about 35 miles south of Fresno in California’s Central Valley, is scheduled to be completed by July 1 of next year, according to an announcement from the Pentagon office of the Chief of Naval Operations. The move is designed to consolidate the Navy’s F-35C pilot and maintenance training operations, according to the announcement.

According to a Dec. 8 story on the Navy Times website, the consolidation of VFA-101 and the VFA-125 “Rough Raiders” is coming as the Navy works to establish its first operational F-35C squadron. Current plans call for that squadron’s initial deployment to come in 2021, aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson.

RIP, lot of history going away right here

The 1st(and only) time I saw a TomCat perform in real life was @ 2000 Chicago Air and Water show..........It was in a Grim Reapers Livery,I'll Never Forget it.