Official VQ-4 Pax River Det Patches

Official VQ-4 Shadows NAS Patuxent River detachment patch set.

The Shadows know — TACAMO E-6B alert at Pax River, EAMs to the strategic forces.

Fleet Air Reconnaissance Squadron 4 (VQ-4), the "Shadows," is a U.S. Navy E-6B Mercury squadron in the TACAMO (Take Charge and Move Out) mission — providing the airborne, survivable communications link between the National Command Authority and the U.S. strategic nuclear forces, including ballistic missile submarines and intercontinental ballistic missile silos. The squadron is part of Strategic Communications Wing ONE (STRATCOMWING 1) at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma, and operates with roughly 500 Sailors plus 400+ officers and enlisted personnel — making it one of the largest operational aviation squadrons in the Navy. VQ-4 was originally established at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland on July 1, 1968 as the East Coast TACAMO squadron flying the EC-130Q Hercules, and moved its homeport to Tinker AFB in November 1992 in the post-Cold War TACAMO consolidation. The squadron took delivery of its first E-6A Mercury on January 25, 1991 and its first E-6B on September 20, 1999. Today VQ-4 maintains a permanent detachment at NAS Patuxent River, Maryland — the Pax River Det — operating alert facilities for the E-6B alongside Travis AFB and Tinker, ready to launch on the EAM in any window. "The Shadows know" — that's the squadron tagline. This Pax River Det patch set is for the crews who keep the East Coast alert covered every day.

Perfect For: VQ-4 Shadows active-duty and veteran personnel, E-6B Mercury pilots, NFOs, mission commanders, and battle staff officers, NAS Patuxent River detachment Sailors, Tinker AFB STRATCOMWING 1 personnel, EC-130Q TACAMO heritage operators, U.S. Strategic Command nuclear C2 community members, and TACAMO crew collectors.

VQ-4 Shadows Pax River Det — TACAMO alert, EAMs ready, since 1968.