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431st Air Refueling Squadron
The 431st Air Refueling Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 4440th Aircraft Delivery Group at Biggs Air Force Base, Texas, where it was inactivated on 8 March 1965. From 1957 to 1965, it operated modified Superfortress bombers to refuel tactical Fighter, reconnaissance, and light bomber aircraft. History The 431st Air Refueling Squadron was established at Turner Air Force Base in April 1957 by Tactical Air Command (TAC) to provide a dedicated air refueling capability, initially for North American F-100 Super Sabres, and later for other in-flight refueling capable TAC bombers, fighters and reconnaissance aircraft. The squadron was briefly equipped on activation with Boeing KB-29M Stratofortresses transferred from Strategic Air Command's 508th Air Refueling Squadron, formerly assigned to the 31st Strategic Fighter Wing, which was inactivated at Turner in July. These aircraft were bombers converted to tankers using a British-deve ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Air Refueling
Aerial refueling, also referred to as air refueling, in-flight refueling (IFR), air-to-air refueling (AAR), and tanking, is the process of transferring aviation fuel from one aircraft (the tanker) to another (the receiver) while both aircraft are in flight. The two main refueling systems are ''probe-and-drogue'', which is simpler to adapt to existing aircraft, and the ''flying boom'', which offers faster fuel transfer, but requires a dedicated boom operator station. The procedure allows the receiving aircraft to remain airborne longer, extending its range or loiter time. A series of air refuelings can give range limited only by crew fatigue/physical needs and engineering factors such as engine oil consumption. As the receiver aircraft can be topped up with extra fuel in the air, air refueling can allow a takeoff with a greater payload which could be weapons, cargo, or personnel: the maximum takeoff weight is maintained by carrying less fuel and topping up once airborne. Aerial ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
508th Air Refueling Squadron
The 508th Air Refueling Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was an air refueling unit that operated the Boeing KB-29 and Boeing KC-97 from at Turner Air Force Base, Georgia from 1953 to 1957. In 1985, the squadron was consolidated with the 608th Bombardment Squadron, a World War II training unit of the Army Air Forces (AAF). The 608th was active from 1943 to 1944 training heavy bomber crews until it was disbanded in a general reorganization of AAF training and support units. History World War II The squadron's first predecessor was the 608th Bombardment Squadron, which was activated at Pyote Army Air Base, Texas on 1 March 1943, but made four moves before the end of the year. The squadron was one of the four original squadrons of the 400th Bombardment Group. It served as an Operational Training Unit (OTU) for Consolidated B-24 Liberator units until December.Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 683Maurer, ''Combat Units'', p. 285 The OTU program involved th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ninth Air Force
The Ninth Air Force (Air Forces Central) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It is the Air Force Service Component of United States Central Command (USCENTCOM), a joint Department of Defense Unified Combatant Command, combatant command responsible for U.S. security interests in 27 nations that stretch from the Horn of Africa through the Persian Gulf region, into Central Asia. Activated as 9th Air Force on 8 April 1942, the command fought in World War II both in the Western Desert Campaign in Egypt and Libya and as the tactical fighter component of the United States Strategic Air Forces in Europe, engaging enemy forces in France, the Low Countries and in Nazi Germany. During the Cold War, it was one of two Numbered Air Forces of Tactical Air Command. Co-designated as United States Central Command Air Forces (CENTAF) on 1 January 1983, on 2009 as part of a complicated transfer of lineage, the lineage and his ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Davis–Monthan Air Force Base
Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DM AFB) is a United States Air Force base southeast of downtown Tucson, Arizona. It was established in 1925 as Davis–Monthan Landing Field. The host unit for Davis–Monthan AFB is the 355th Wing (355 WG) assigned to Twelfth Air Force (12AF), part of Air Combat Command (ACC). The base is best known as the location of the Air Force Materiel Command's 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (309 AMARG), the aircraft boneyard for all excess military and U.S. government aircraft and aerospace vehicles. Davis–Monthan Air Force Base is a key ACC installation. The 355th Wing (355 WG) provides A-10 Thunderbolt II close air support and OA-10 forward air controllers to ground forces worldwide. The 355 FW is a host unit, providing medical, logistical, mission and operational support to assigned units. The 355 FW is the sole formal training unit for the A-10 aircraft, providing initial and recurrent training to all U.S. Air Force A-10 and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Military Aircraft Storage And Disposition Center
A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct military uniform. It may consist of one or more military branches such as an army, navy, air force, space force, marines, or coast guard. The main task of the military is usually defined as defence of the state and its interests against external armed threats. In broad usage, the terms ''armed forces'' and ''military'' are often treated as synonymous, although in technical usage a distinction is sometimes made in which a country's armed forces may include both its military and other paramilitary forces. There are various forms of irregular military forces, not belonging to a recognized state; though they share many attributes with regular military forces, they are less often referred to as simply ''military''. A nation's military may f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker
The Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker is an American military aerial refueling aircraft that was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. It is the predominant variant of the C-135 Stratolifter family of transport aircraft. The KC-135 was the United States Air Force's first jet-powered refueling tanker and replaced the KC-97 Stratofreighter. The KC-135 was initially tasked with refueling strategic bombers, but it was used extensively in the Vietnam War and later conflicts such as Operation Desert Storm to extend the range and endurance of US tactical fighters and bombers. The KC-135 entered service with the United States Air Force (USAF) in 1957; it is one of nine military fixed-wing aircraft with over 60 years of continuous service with its original operator. The KC-135 is supplemented by the larger McDonnell Douglas KC-10 Extender. Studies have concluded that many of the aircraft could be flown until 2030, although maintenance costs have great ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter
The Boeing KC-97 Stratofreighter is a four-engined, piston-powered United States strategic tanker aircraft based on the Boeing C-97 Stratofreighter. It replaced the KB-29 and was succeeded by the Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker. Design and development The KC-97 Stratofreighter was an aerial refueling tanker variant of the C-97 Stratofreighter (which was itself based on the Boeing B-29 Superfortress), greatly modified with all the necessary tanks, plumbing, and a flying boom first developed for the KB-29 bomber. The cavernous upper deck was capable of accommodating oversize cargo accessed through a very large right-side door. In addition, transferable jet fuel was contained in tanks on the lower deck (G-L models). Both decks were heated and pressurized for high altitude operations. The boom operator lay prone, viewing operations through a window at the bottom of the tail, a configuration later used on the KC-135 ''Note: Occasionally the KC-97 has been referred to as "Stratotanker". ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Biggs Air Force Base
Biggs Army Airfield (formerly Biggs Air Force Base) is a United States Army military airbase located on the Fort Bliss military base in El Paso, Texas. History Biggs Field/Biggs Army Airfield (1916–47) On 15 June 1919, following an attack by Pancho Villa's forces on Ciudad Juárez, United States Army Air Service personnel equipped with Dayton-Wright DH-4 aircraft were sent to Fort Bliss to begin patrols of the U.S.-Mexico border, initiating the United States Army Border Air Patrol. In August 1919 construction commenced on a steel hangar for an airship station at Camp Owen Bierne, Fort Bliss and in December 1919 the 8th Balloon Company moved there from Brooks Field, Texas. In January 1920 the 1st Surveillance Group moved from Kelly Field to Fort Bliss. Biggs Air Force Base (1947–66) On 16 March 1948 the 97th Bombardment Wing, Heavy operating B-29 Superfortresses moved to Biggs AFB from Smoky Hill Air Force Base, Kansas. The 810th Air Division was activated at Biggs o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Langley Air Force Base
Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News, Virginia, Newport News. It was one of List of airfields of the Training Section of the United States Army Air Service, thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the entry of the United States into World War I in April 1917. On 1 October 2010, Langley Air Force Base was joined with Fort Eustis to become Joint Base Langley–Eustis. The base was established in accordance with congressional legislation implementing the recommendations of the 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission. The legislation ordered the consolidation of the two facilities which were nearby, but separate military installations, into a single joint base, one of 12 formed in the United States as a result of the law. Overview The Air Force mission at Langley is to sustain the ability for fast global deployment and air superiority for the United States or allied armed forces. The b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
4505th Air Refueling Wing
The United States Air Force's 4505th Air Refueling Wing (Tactical) was an Air Refueling unit located at Langley AFB, Virginia. It was established on 1 Jul 1958 at Langley AFB, Virginia. The 4505th was the only aerial refueling wing in the Tactical Air Command structure. The wing flew the KB-50J, a derivative of the B-50 nuclear bomber. The 4505th Air Refueling Wing (Tactical) was discontinued on 8 Oct 1963. Assignments Major command *Tactical Air Command (1 Jul 1958 – 8 Oct 1963) Numbered Air Force * (1 Jul 58 – 8 Oct 63) Air division * (1 Jul 58 – 8 Oct 63) Previous designations *4505th Air Refueling Wing, Tactical (1 Jul 1958 – 8 Oct 1963) Units * 4440th Aircraft Delivery Group, 1 July 1961 – 8 October 1963 *427th Air Refueling Squadron – Robins AFB, Georgia (1 Jul 1958 – 8 Oct 1963) *429th Air Refueling Squadron – Langley AFB, Virginia (1 Jul 1958 – 8 Oct 1963) * 431st Air Refueling Squadron – Turner AFB, Georgia (1 Jul 1958 &nd ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Boeing KB-50 Superfortress
The Boeing B-50 Superfortress is an American strategic bomber. A post–World War II revision of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, it was fitted with more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 radial engines, stronger structure, a taller tail fin, and other improvements. It was the last piston-engined bomber built by Boeing for the United States Air Force, and was further refined into Boeing's final such design, the B-54. Although not as well known as its direct predecessor, the B-50 was in USAF service for nearly 20 years. After its primary service with Strategic Air Command (SAC) ended, B-50 airframes were modified into aerial tankers for Tactical Air Command (TAC) (KB-50) and as weather reconnaissance aircraft (WB-50) for the Air Weather Service. Both the tanker and hurricane hunter versions were retired in March 1965 due to metal fatigue and corrosion found in the wreckage of KB-50J, ''48-065'', which crashed on 14 October 1964. Design and development Development of an improved B- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
31st Strategic Fighter Wing
The 31st Fighter Wing (31 FW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the United States Air Forces in Europe major command and the Third Air Force. It is stationed at Aviano Air Base, Italy, a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) base run by the Italian Air Force. The 31st Fighter Wing is the only United States fighter wing south of the Alps. This strategic location makes the wing important for operations in NATO's southern region. The 31st FW maintains two F-16 fighter squadrons, the 555th Fighter Squadron and the 510th Fighter Squadron, allowing the wing to conduct offense and defensive combat air operations. The 31st Fighter Wing first activated in 1947, but it traces its heritage to its World War II predecessor unit, the 31st Pursuit Group. The group's lineage began with its activation at Selfridge Field Michigan, on 1 February 1940. Redesignated as the 31 Fighter Group shortly before entering the war, it amassed an impressive record. Number one in the Mediterranean ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
