The 303d Expeditionary Rescue Squadron is a provisional unit of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

. It is permanently deployed to Camp Lemonier, Djibouti. It was reactivated in 2013 as a forward deployed umbrella organization for rotational

Sikorsky HH-60 Pave Hawk The Sikorsky MH-60G/HH-60G Pave Hawk is a four-blade, twin-engine, medium-lift utility military helicopter manufactured by Sikorsky Aircraft. It is a derivative of the UH-60 Black Hawk and incorporates the US Air Force PAVE electronic systems ...

and pararescue/Guardian Angel combat search and rescue units of the Air Force Reserve deployed to U.S. Africa Command, specifically to

Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa Combined may refer to: * Alpine combined (skiing), the combination of slalom and downhill skiing as a single event ** Super combined (skiing) * Nordic combined (skiing), the combination of cross country skiing and ski jumping as a single event * T ...

. and From 1997 until 2003, the then-303d Rescue Squadron was a

Lockheed HC-130 The Lockheed HC-130 is an extended-range, search and rescue (SAR)/combat search and rescue (CSAR) version of the C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft, with two different versions operated by two separate services in the U.S. armed for ...

Combat King squadron, part of the Air Force Reserve Command's 939th Rescue Wing at

Portland Air Reserve Station Portland Air National Guard Base is a United States Air Force base, located at Portland International Airport, in Portland, Oregon. Overview The base is the home of the 142nd Fighter Wing, Oregon Air National Guard. The 142nd FW participates arou ...

Portland International Airport Portland International Airport is a joint civil–military airport and the largest airport in the U.S. state of Oregon, accounting for 90% of the state's passenger air travel and more than 95% of its air cargo. It is within Portland's city l ...

, Oregon. When the 939th transitioned to an air refueling mission with the

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 trans ...

and became the

939th Air Refueling Wing The 939th Air Refueling Wing is an inactive United States Air Force Reserve unit. It was last active with the Fourth Air Force, based at the Portland Air Reserve Station, Oregon. It was inactivated on 30 June 2008. History Need for reserve tr ...

, the 303d was inactivated. As part of the

2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission The 2005 Base Realignment and Closure Commission preliminary list was released by the United States Department of Defense on May 13, 2005. It was the fifth Base Realignment and Closure ("BRAC") proposal generated since the process was created in ...

process, the 939 ARW was itself inactivated in June 2008.

Mission

Combat search and rescue, personnel recovery, and aeromedical evacuation capability for USAFRICOM, AFAFRICA and

(CJTF-HOA), to include a rescue alert mission, utilizing the HH-60 Pave Hawk helicopter.

History

Reserve rescue mission

The 303d performed search and rescue, as well as aeromedical evacuation missions, in the Southwestern United States and occasionally into Central America from 1956 to 1985. During this period the squadron also performed escort missions for aircraft deploying to the

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the contine ...

Airlift

Its mission changed to tactical and theater airlift with the

Lockheed C-130 Hercules The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is an American four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built by Lockheed (now Lockheed Martin). Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally desig ...

in 1985, to include also providing aerial

fire-fighting Firefighting is the act of extinguishing or preventing the spread of unwanted fires from threatening human lives and destroying property and the environment. A person who engages in firefighting is known as a firefighter. Firefighters typicall ...

utilizing the Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System in support to the U.S. Forest Service in the Western U.S. from 1985 to 1993.

Return to rescue mission

Beginning in 1997, the 303d transitioned back to the HC-130 Hercules and once again trained for combat search and rescue and SAR and helicopter

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 ...

missions, primarily in the Northwestern United States, augmented by periodic overseas deployments augmenting the regular Air Force. Members of the 303rd were mobilized and deployed to Italy from May - August 1999 in support of Operation Allied Force. The 303d was inactivated in 2003 when the 939th Rescue Wing changed missions and became the

Expeditionary unit

The 303d was reactivated in 2013 as an expeditionary rescue squadron for rotational Air Force Reserve Sikorsky HH-60G Pave Hawk and pararescue/Guardian Angel units deployed to Camp Lemonier, Djibouti in support of

(CJTF-HOA). The squadron replaced Heavy Marine Helicopter Squadron 464 (

HMH-464 Marine Heavy Helicopter Squadron 464 (HMH-464) is a United States Marine Corps helicopter squadron consisting of CH-53E Super Stallion transport helicopters. The squadron is known as the "Condors" and is based at Marine Corps Air Station New Rive ...

) Detachment A.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 303d Air Rescue Squadron on 1 August 1956 : Activated in the reserve on 8 October 1956 : Redesignated 303d Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron on 18 January 1966 : Redesignated 303d Tactical Airlift Squadron on 1 April 1985 : Redesignated 303d Airlift Squadron on 1 February 1992 : Inactivated on 30 June 1993 * Redesignated 303 Rescue Squadron on 1 April 1997 : Activated in the reserve on 15 April 1997 : Inactivated on 1 April 2003 * Redesignated 303d Expeditionary Rescue Squadron and converted to provisional status on 22 July 2011 * Activated c. 5 February 2013

Assignments

* 2347th Air Reserve Flying Center, 8 October 1956 * 2350th Air Reserve Flying Center, 1 October 1958 *

Fourth Air Force The Fourth Air Force (4 AF) is a numbered air force of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC). It is headquartered at March Air Reserve Base, California. 4 AF directs the activities and supervises the training of more than 30,000 Air Force Res ...

, 8 April 1960 * Sixth Air Force Reserve Region, 1 September 1960 * Western Air Force Reserve Region, 31 December 1969 *

403d Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Wing The 403rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force assigned to the Air Force Reserve Command. It is located at Keesler Air Force Base, Mississippi and employs a military manning authorization of more than 1,400 reservists, including some ...

(later 403 Rescue and Weather Reconnaissance Wing), 15 March 1976 *

943d Tactical Airlift Group The 943rd Rescue Group is a reserve component of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to Tenth Air Force under the Air Force Reserve Command and is based in Davis-Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. When mobilized, Air Combat Command direct ...

(later 943d Airlift Group), 1 April 1985 * 943d Operations Group, 1 August 1992 – 30 June 1993 * 939th Operations Group, 15 April 1997 – 1 April 2003 *

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 f ...

to activate or inactivate at any time on or after 22 July 2011 ::

449th Air Expeditionary Group The 449th Air Expeditionary Group (449 AEG) is a provisional United States Air Force unit assigned to the Third Air Force supporting United States Africa Command. It is stationed at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti. It flies missions for Africa Command ...

, c, 5 February 2013

Stations

Long Beach Municipal Airport Long Beach Airport is a public airport three miles northeast of downtown Long Beach, in Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is also called Daugherty Field, named after local aviator Earl Daugherty. The airport was an operating base ...

, California, 8 October 1956 *

March Air Force Base March Air Reserve Base (March ARB), previously known as March Air Force Base (March AFB) is located in Riverside County, California between the cities of Riverside, Moreno Valley, and Perris. It is the home to the Air Force Reserve Command's ...

, California, 1 November 1960 – 30 June 1993 * Portland International Airport (later

Portland Air National Guard Base Portland Air National Guard Base is a United States Air Force base, located at Portland International Airport, in Portland, Oregon. Overview The base is the home of the 142nd Fighter Wing, Oregon Air National Guard. The 142nd FW participates arou ...

), Oregon, 15 April 1997 – 1 April 2003 * Camp Lemonier, Djibouti, c. 5 February 2013

Aircraft

* Grumman SA-16 Albatross (later HU-16) (1956–1965) * Boeing HC-97 Stratofreighter (1965–1972) * Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker (1965–1966) *

(1972–1985, 1997–2003) *

(1984–1993) * Sikorsky HH-60 Pave Hawk (2013–)

References

External links

* * {{USAF Air Force Reserve Command 303 Air expeditionary squadrons of the United States Air Force Military units and formations in Oregon