Following that installation's BRAC-directed closure, the squadron relocated to nearby former Carswell Air Force Base, which was transferred to U.S. Navy control according to BRAC action and renamed Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base Fort Worth / Carswell Field.

[1] During its service VF-202 could be identified by the tail code "AF" and nose numbers (MODEX) "200" through "213."

Due to the squadron's reserve status, the transition took longer than for an active unit, not being concluded until May 1988, when VF-202 carrier qualified with the F-14 aboard USS America.

VF-202 was equipped with two nuclear strike-capable aircraft giving the squadron an extra task after the RA-5C Vigilante and RF-8G Crusader had been phased out of service.

Even with the force reduction after the end of the Cold War and continuing budget cuts, one would have expected that the TARPS capable squadron would not be disestablished.