55th Pursuit Squadron
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55th Pursuit Squadron
The 55th Fighter Squadron is part of the 20th Fighter Wing at Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina. It operates the General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft conducting air superiority missions. The squadron is one of the oldest in the United States Air Force, its origins dating to 9 August 1917, being organized at Kelly Field, Texas. It deployed overseas to France as part of the American Expeditionary Forces, as an aero construction squadron at the Third Aviation Instructional Center, Issoudun Aerodrome. The squadron saw combat during World War II, and became part of the United States Air Forces in Europe during the Cold War. History World War I The 55th Fighter Squadron's roots trace back to 9 August 1917. Originally organized as the 55th Aero Squadron at Kelly Field, Texas, by November the 55th Aero Squadron (Construction) was deployed to Third Aviation Instruction Center on Issoudun Aerodrome, France, then to the American Aerial Gunnery School in St. Jean de Monts on ...
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F-16C Fighting Falcon
The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine Multirole combat aircraft, multirole fighter aircraft originally developed by General Dynamics for the United States Air Force (USAF). Designed as an air superiority day fighter, it evolved into a successful night fighter, all-weather multirole aircraft. Over 4,600 aircraft have been built since production was approved in 1976. Although no longer being purchased by the U.S. Air Force, improved versions are being built for export customers. In 1993, General Dynamics sold its aircraft manufacturing business to the Lockheed Corporation, which in turn became part of Lockheed Martin after a 1995 merger with Martin Marietta. The Fighting Falcon's key features include a frameless bubble canopy for good visibility, side-stick, side-mounted control stick to ease control while maneuvering, an ejection seat reclined 30 degrees from vertical to reduce the effect of g-forces on the Aircraft pilot, pilot, and the first use of a rel ...
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Kelly Field
Kelly Field (formerly Kelly Air Force Base) is a Joint-Use facility located in San Antonio, Texas. It was originally named after George E. M. Kelly, the first member of the U.S. military killed in the crash of an airplane he was piloting. In 2001, pursuant to BRAC action, the former Kelly AFB runway and land west of the runway became "Kelly Field" and control of this reduced size installation was transferred to the adjacent Lackland Air Force Base, part of Joint Base San Antonio. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 802d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command (AETC). Kelly Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the United States entry into World War I, being established on 27 March 1917. It was used as a flying field; primary flying school; school for adjutants, supply officers, engineers; mechanics school, and as an aviation general supply depot. Kelly Air Force Base and its associated San Antonio Air Logistics Ce ...
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Curtiss P-40 Warhawk
The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational service. The Warhawk was used by most Allied powers during World War II, and remained in frontline service until the end of the war. It was the third most-produced American fighter of World War II, after the P-51 and P-47; by November 1944, when production of the P-40 ceased, 13,738 had been built,Murphy and McNiece 2009, p. 83. all at Curtiss-Wright Corporation's main production facilities in Buffalo, New York. P-40 Warhawk was the name the United States Army Air Corps gave the plane, and after June 1941, the USAAF adopted the name for all models, making it the official name in the U.S. for all P-40s. The British Commonwealth and Soviet air forces used the name Tomahawk for models e ...
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Curtiss P-36 Hawk
The Curtiss P-36 Hawk, also known as the Curtiss Hawk Model 75, is an American-designed and built fighter aircraft of the 1930s and 40s. A contemporary of the Hawker Hurricane and Messerschmitt Bf 109, it was one of the first of a new generation of combat aircraft—a sleek monoplane design with a retractable undercarriage making extensive use of metal in its construction. Perhaps best known as the predecessor of the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, the P-36 saw little combat with the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was the fighter used most extensively and successfully by the French Air Force during the Battle of France. The P-36 was also ordered by the governments of the Netherlands and Norway but did not arrive in time to see action before both were occupied by Nazi Germany. The type was also manufactured under license in China, for the Republic of China Air Force, as well as in British India, for the Royal Air Force (RAF) and Royal Indian Air Force (RIAF). Axis pow ...
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P-26 Peashooter
The Boeing P-26 "Peashooter" was the first American production all-metal fighter aircraft and the first pursuit monoplane to enter squadron service with the United States Army Air Corps. Designed and built by Boeing, the prototype first flew in 1932, and the type was still in use with the U.S. Army Air Corps as late as 1941 in the Philippines. There are two surviving Peashooters, but there are three reproductions on display with two more under construction. Design and development The project funded by Boeing to produce the Boeing Model 248 began in September 1931, with the US Army Air Corps supplying the engines and the instruments. The open cockpit, fixed landing gear, externally braced wing design was the last such design procured by the USAAC as a fighter. The Model 248 had a high landing speed, which caused a number of accidents. To remedy this, Flap (aircraft), flaps were fitted to reduce the landing speed. The Army Air Corps ordered three prototypes, designated ''XP-936'' ...
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Airco DH
The Aircraft Manufacturing Company Limited (Airco) was an early United Kingdom, British aircraft manufacturer. Established during 1912, it grew rapidly during the First World War, referring to itself as the largest aircraft company in the world by 1918. Airco produced many thousands of aircraft for both the British and Allied military air wings throughout the war, including fighter aircraft, fighters, trainer aircraft, trainers and medium bomber, bombers. The majority of the company's aircraft were designed in-house by Airco's chief designer Geoffrey de Havilland. Airco established the first airline in the United Kingdom, Aircraft Transport and Travel Limited, which operated as a subsidiary of Airco. On 25 August 1919, it commenced the world's first regular daily international service. Following the end of the war, the company's fortunes rapidly turned sour. The interwar period was unfavourable for aircraft manufacturers largely due to a glut of surplus aircraft from the war ...
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Boeing P-12
The Boeing P-12/F4B was an American pursuit aircraft that was operated by the United States Army Air Corps , United States Marine Corps, and United States Navy. Design and development Developed as a private venture to replace the Boeing F2B and F3B with the United States Navy, the Boeing Model 99 first flew on 25 June 1928. The new aircraft was smaller, lighter and more agile than the ones it replaced but still used the Wasp engine of the F3B. This resulted in a higher top speed and overall better performance. As result of Navy evaluation 27 were ordered as the F4B-1; later evaluation by the United States Army Air Corps resulted in orders with the designation P-12. Boeing supplied the USAAC with 366 P-12s between 1929 and 1932. Production of all variants totaled 586. F4B-1 (Boeing Model 99) The F4B-1 was built using typical construction techniques of the day with a welded truss fuselage with formers and longerons to define the aerodynamic shape. Wings were of wood construct ...
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Mather Field
Mather may refer to: People * Mather (given name), a list of people with the given name * Mather (surname), a list of people with the surname Places * Mather, California (other) * Mather, Manitoba, Canada, a community * Mather, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * Mather, Wisconsin, an unincorporated community * 49700 Mather, an asteroid * Mather Air Force Base, east of Sacramento, California * Mathers Bridge, Merritt Island, Florida * Mather Gorge, on the border between Maryland and Virginia * Mount Mather (other) Other uses * Mather House (other) * Mather Stock Car Company, an American corporation that built railroad rolling stock * Mather Inn, a hotel in Ishpeming, Michigan * Mather Tower, Chicago, Illinois * The Mather School, oldest public elementary school in North America See also * Mathers Mathers is an English surname and may refer to: * Edward Peter Mathers (1850–1924), British journalist and newspaper proprietor * Edward Powys ...
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World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fighting occurring throughout Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Pacific, and parts of Asia. An estimated 9 million soldiers were killed in combat, plus another 23 million wounded, while 5 million civilians died as a result of military action, hunger, and disease. Millions more died in genocides within the Ottoman Empire and in the 1918 influenza pandemic, which was exacerbated by the movement of combatants during the war. Prior to 1914, the European great powers were divided between the Triple Entente (comprising France, Russia, and Britain) and the Triple Alliance (containing Germany, Austria-Hungary, and Italy). Tensions in the Balkans came to a head on 28 June 1914, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdin ...
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Third Aviation Instruction Center
Issoudun Aerodrome was a complex of military airfields in the vicinity of Issoudun, Centre, France. They were used during World War I as part of the Third Air Instructional Center, American Expeditionary Forces for training United States airmen prior to being sent into combat on the Western Front. It was at that time the largest air base in the world. Today the entire complex consists of agricultural fields, the military facility totally obscured with no trace of its wartime history. History Background By the summer of 1917, two and a half years of the air war had begun to take a serious toll on the number of French and British aviators. While the United States possessed a relatively enormous pool of human resources, she lacked the well developed training methods and aircraft production capabilities of the Allies. In order to maximize the resources of both, the French submitted a memorandum to General George O. Squier, then the Chief Signal Officer of the U.S. Army, suggesting ...
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Cold War
The Cold War is a term commonly used to refer to a period of geopolitical tension between the United States and the Soviet Union and their respective allies, the Western Bloc and the Eastern Bloc. The term '' cold war'' is used because there was no large-scale fighting directly between the two superpowers, but they each supported major regional conflicts known as proxy wars. The conflict was based around the ideological and geopolitical struggle for global influence by these two superpowers, following their temporary alliance and victory against Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan in 1945. Aside from the nuclear arsenal development and conventional military deployment, the struggle for dominance was expressed via indirect means such as psychological warfare, propaganda campaigns, espionage, far-reaching embargoes, rivalry at sports events, and technological competitions such as the Space Race. The Western Bloc was led by the United States as well as a number of other First W ...
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United States Air Forces In Europe
United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two film Literature * ''United!'' (novel), a 1973 children's novel by Michael Hardcastle Music * United (band), Japanese thrash metal band formed in 1981 Albums * ''United'' (Commodores album), 1986 * ''United'' (Dream Evil album), 2006 * ''United'' (Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell album), 1967 * ''United'' (Marian Gold album), 1996 * ''United'' (Phoenix album), 2000 * ''United'' (Woody Shaw album), 1981 Songs * "United" (Judas Priest song), 1980 * "United" (Prince Ital Joe and Marky Mark song), 1994 * "United" (Robbie Williams song), 2000 * "United", a song by Danish duo Nik & Jay featuring Lisa Rowe Television * ''United'' (TV series), a 1990 BBC Two documentary series * ''United!'', a soap opera that aired on BBC One from 1965-19 ...
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