At Holloman, the squadron participated in Tactical Air Command tactical exercises and firepower demonstrations to maintain combat readiness.
Also, the first "Tail Codes" to identify squadron aircraft were applied, rather than the traditional yellow colors of the 8th which had been used since the Korean War.
  Initially "HC" was the tail code identifier for the 8th, however, in 1972, the Air Force issued AFM 66-1 which specified wing tail codes and the squadron's planes were standardized on the 49th's "HO" tail code.
 However, a yellow tail stripe was applied to identify squadron aircraft.

The 8th also retained its NATO commitment to return once a year to its "dual base" home in West Germany.
 These deployments were known as "Crested Cap", and are listed belowi in the squadron station list.
With the end of the Cold War and subsequent force drawdowns by USAFE, these annual exercises ended in 1991.
At Holloman, the squadron participated in Tactical Air Command tactical exercises and firepower demonstrations to maintain combat readiness. Also, the first "Tail Codes" to identify squadron aircraft were applied, rather than the traditional yellow colors of the 8th which had been used since the Korean War.   Initially "HC" was the tail code identifier for the 8th, however, in 1972, the Air Force issued AFM 66-1 which specified wing tail codes and the squadron's planes were standardized on the 49th's "HO" tail code.  However, a yellow tail stripe was applied to identify squadron aircraft.
The 8th also retained its NATO commitment to return once a year to its "dual base" home in West Germany.  These deployments were known as "Crested Cap", and are listed belowi in the squadron station list. With the end of the Cold War and subsequent force drawdowns by USAFE, these annual exercises ended in 1991.
8th Fighter Squadron