History 

1. October 2013

Tailcodes 

History 

The Navy’s first Triton squadron, Unmanned Patrol Squadron 19 (VUP-19), “Big Red,” was stood up Oct. 1, 2013. The mission of VUP-19 is to operate continuously from fixed land bases supporting operational and exercise requirements of combatant commanders; to operate and maintain the MQ-4C Triton Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) to initially support 5th Fleet, 6th Fleet, 7th Fleet, U.S. Fleet Forces Atlantic Operations and Commander Task Force 80 operations; and to be prepared to support Northern Command and Southern Command operations when tasked.

The unmanned aircraft will be operated by crews consisting of Navy P-8A pilots, naval flights officers and aviation warfare operators using a mission control system located at NAS Jacksonville or NAS Whidbey Island, Wash. VUP-19 will provide the organizational framework for mission control, mission planning and data analysis from NAS Jacksonville.

MQ-4C Triton, formerly known as Broad Area Maritime Surveillance UAS, is a maritime UAS similar to the U.S. Air Force Global Hawk.

VUP-19 honors the legacy and tradition of VP-19, which was disestablished by the Navy in August 1991.