Lafayette F. Norton, 2004-07-11 [MilColl OH 628] - North Carolina Digital Collections

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Title

Lafayette F. Norton, 2004-07-11 [MilColl OH 628]

Date

August 11 2004

Creator

["Norton, Lafayette Ferguson, 1939-"]

Place

["Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek, Virginia Beach (city), Virginia, United States","Naval Station Norfolk, Norfolk (city), Virginia, United States","Naval Station Roosevelt Roads, Vieques County, Puerto Rico","Oceana, Virginia Beach (city), Virginia, United States","Philippines","Việt Nam (Vietnam)","Washington, District of Columbia, United States","Naval Air Station Whiting Field, Santa Rosa County, Florida, United States","Naval Air Station Kingsville, Kieberg County, Texas, United States","Monterey, Monterey County, California","Macdill Air Force Base, Hillsborough County, Florida, United States","Cambodia","Charleston, Charleston County, South Carolina, United States","Laos","Norfolk (independent city), Virginia, United States","Key West, Monroe County, Florida, United States"]

Local Call Number

MilColl OH 628

NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL AND CULTURAL RESOURCES OFFICE OF ARCHIVES AND HISTORY Military Collection State Archives of North Carolina Lafayette F. Norton Interview Summary MilColl OH 628 Interviewee: Lafayette F. Norton Interviewer: Sion Harrington III; Richard M. Ripley Interview Date: August 1 1 , 2004 Interview Location: Raleigh, N.C. Interview Runtime: 2:03:22 Biographical Sketch Lafayette Ferguson Norton was bom on Febmary 17, 1939, in Durham, N.C. He was raised in Raleigh, N.C., where he graduated from Broughton High School in 1957. Norton attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he enrolled in the U.S. Naval Reserve Officers’ Training Coips (NROTC) program. As part of the NROTC program, Norton completed amphibious training at U.S. Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek in Virginia; aviation orientation at U.S. Naval Air Station Kingsville; and a couple of cruises out of U.S. Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia. Norton graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1961. Norton was commissioned as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy in June 1961. He was assigned to flight school, and would graduate in August 1962. Upon the completion of his aviation training, Norton served as a flight instructor at the U.S. Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Florida. After a year as an instructor, he was sent for further training at U.S. Naval Air Station Oceana at Virginia Beach, Virginia; then, he was sent to Key West, Florida. Norton was then assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 3 1 (VFA-31), a U.S. Navy strike fighter squadron based out of Naval Air Station Oceana. Norton remained with VFA-31 for over three years, completing two Mediterranean cruises aboard the USS Saratoga (CV-60), a Forrestal- class supercarrier. Following his service with VFA-3 1, he was an instructor pilot at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, as part of the Personnel Exchange Program (PEP). Norton then attended an Aviation Safety Officer Course in Monterey, California, before he was assigned to the Strike Fighter Squadron 143 (VFA-143). Norton was deployed to the Philippines in early 1970, to join his unit for the final three months of their tour during the Vietnam War. He 1

Document Details
Image Details

Document Details

Title

Lafayette F. Norton, 2004-07-11 [MilColl OH 628]

Date

August 11 2004

Creator

["Norton, Lafayette Ferguson, 1939-"]

Contributor

["Harrington, Sion, III.","Ripley, Richard M."]

Rights

All rights held by the State Archives of NC. Permission to publish must be obtained from the registrar in writing.

Description

Lafayette Ferguson Norton was born on February 17, 1939, in Durham, N.C. He was raised in Raleigh, N.C., where he graduated from Broughton High School in 1957. Norton attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he enrolled in the U.S. Naval Reserve Officers' Training Corps (NROTC) program. As part of the NROTC program, Norton completed amphibious training at U.S. Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek in Virginia; aviation orientation at U.S. Naval Air Station Kingsville; and a couple of cruises out of U.S. Naval Station Norfolk, Virginia. Norton graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1961. Norton was commissioned as an Ensign in the U.S. Navy in June 1961. He was assigned to flight school, and would graduate in August 1962. Upon the completion of his aviation training, Norton served as a flight instructor at the U.S. Naval Air Station Whiting Field in Milton, Florida. After a year as an instructor, he was sent for further training at U.S. Naval Air Station Oceana at Virginia Beach, Virginia; then, he was sent to Key West, Florida. Norton was then assigned to Strike Fighter Squadron 31 (VFA-31), a U.S. Navy strike fighter squadron based out of Naval Air Station Oceana. Norton remained with VFA-31 for over three years, completing two Mediterranean cruises aboard the USS Saratoga (CV-60), a Forrestal-class supercarrier. Following his service with VFA-31, he was an instructor pilot at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, as part of the Personnel Exchange Program (PEP). Norton then attended an Aviation Safety Officer Course in Monterey, California, before he was assigned to the Strike Fighter Squadron 143 (VFA-143). Norton was deployed to the Philippines in early 1970, to join his unit for the final three months of their tour during the Vietnam War. He returned to Southeast Asia for a second tour of duty with VFA-143 from June 1971 to early 1972. During his tours with VFA-143, Norton was based off the USS Enterprise (CVN-65), and completed combat missions in Laos, Cambodia, and South Vietnam. Upon his return to the U.S., Norton served in a number of different positions, including: as an aviation assignment officer in Washington, D.C., from 1972 to 1973; the Executive Officer of a F-4 squadron at NAS Oceana from 1973 to 1975; and Commanding Officer of a F-4 squadron at NAS from 1975 to 1976. While he was serving at NAS Oceana, Norton served aboard the USS Independence (CV-62), a Forrestal-class supercarrier. From 1976 to 1978, Norton served on the Commander, Operational Test and Evaluation Force in Norfolk, Virginia. He then completed a one-year tour as the Air Operations Officer aboard the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69), a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. In the early 1980s, Norton became the Commanding Officer of Fighter Squadron 171 (VF-171) at NAS Oceana. He then served two years in the Bureau of Naval Personnel, before attending the Industrial College of the Armed Forces in Washington, D.C., and earning a master's in Public Administration from George Washington University. Norton served as Major Command of the Training Squadron Command at NAS Oceana from 1986 to 1988. He served as the Chief of Staff of a Cruiser-Destroyer Group based out of Charleston, South Carolina, in 1988; Deputy Director of Personnel Policy in Washington, D.C., from late 1988 to May 1989; commander of the U.S. Naval Safety Center in Norfolk, Virginia, from 1989 to 1990; and commander of Fleet Air Caribbean from June 1990 to September 1993. As commander of Fleet Air Caribbean, Norton was based out of Roosevelt Roads Naval Station in Ceiba, Puerto Rico. Norton returned to Washington, D.C., where he retired from the U.S. Navy in December 1993. He reached the rank of Rear Admiral during his military service. Following his military career, Norton participated in defense-related consulting work, and managed family business and property. In 1996, he became involved with the First Flight Centennial Foundation, a North Carolina-based non-profit organization organized to plan the centennial celebration of the 1903 Wright Brother's first manned flight at Kitty Hawk, N.C. He was Executive Director of First Flight Centennial Foundation from 1998 to 2005. Norton married Sharon Henrietta Cates on December 23, 1961; they divorced in May 1981. At the time of this interview, Norton was living in Raleigh, N.C.

Subject

["Dwight D. Eisenhower (Aircraft carrier : CVN-69)","Enterprise (Aircraft carrier : CVA(N) 65)","Independence (Aircraft carrier : CV-62)","Military history","Oral histories","Oral history","Personal narratives","Retired military personnel","Saratoga (Aircraft carrier : CVA-60)","United States. Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps","Veterans","Vietnam War, 1961-1975","United States. Naval Reserve"]

Index Terms

United States. Navy. Fighting Squadron VFA-31; United States. Navy. Fighting Squadron VFA-143

Local Call Number

MilColl OH 628

Place

Time Period

["(1990-current) Contemporary","(1954-1971) Civil Rights era","(1945-1989) Post War/Cold War period"]

Digital Collections

["Veterans Oral History Collection"]

Source Collections

["Military Veterans Oral History Collection. Military Collection. State Archives of North Carolina"]

Format

["Summaries"]

Hosted By

["State Archives of North Carolina"]

Notes Public

Contact the Military Archivist for access to the interview audio.

Identifier

MilColl_OH_628_Norton_Interview_Summary_Final

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