The 641st Bombardment Squadron was an inactive

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air 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 of the United States Army Signal ...

unit. After training with

Douglas A-20 Havoc The Douglas A-20 Havoc (company designation DB-7) is an American medium bomber, attack aircraft, Intruder (air combat), night intruder, night fighter, and reconnaissance aircraft of World War II. Designed to meet an Army Air Corps requirement f ...

s in the United States the squadron deployed to the

European Theater of World War II The European theatre of World War II was one of the two main theatres of combat during World War II. It saw heavy fighting across Europe for almost six years, starting with Germany's invasion of Poland on 1 September 1939 and ending with the ...

, where it engaged in combat until the

Surrender of Germany The German Instrument of Surrender (german: Bedingungslose Kapitulation der Wehrmacht, lit=Unconditional Capitulation of the "Wehrmacht"; russian: Акт о капитуляции Германии, Akt o kapitulyatsii Germanii, lit=Act of capit ...

. It was last assigned to the

409th Bombardment Group 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

Westover Field Westover may refer to: People * Al Westover (born 1954), American professional basketball player in Australia * Arthur Westover (1864–1935), Canadian sport shooter and 1908 Olympian * Charles Westover (1934–1990), better known as Del Shannon, ...

, Massachusetts, where it was inactivated on 7 November 1945. The 341st Air Refueling Squadron is an inactive

unit. After organizing and training at

Castle Air Force Base Castle Air Force Base (Castle AFB, 1941–1995) is a former United States Air Force Strategic Air Command base in California, located northeast of Atwater, northwest of Merced, and about south of Sacramento. The Central Valley base in uni ...

, California it moved to

Dow Air Force Base Bangor Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard base. Created in 1927 as the commercial Godfrey Field, the airfield was taken over by the U.S. Army just before World War II and renamed Godfrey Army Airfield and later Dow Ar ...

, Maine. It provided

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 a ...

for

Strategic Air Command Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile ...

units from Dow until it was inactivated on 1 February 1963 as SAC replaced its tanker force with more modern

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 transpor ...

s. The two squadrons were consolidated in 1985, but the consolidated squadron has not been active. It was converted to provisional status in February 2001 and redesignated 341st Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron.

History

World War II

The 641st Bombardment Squadron was activated in June 1943 at

Will Rogers Field Will may refer to: Common meanings * Will and testament, instructions for the disposition of one's property after death * Will (philosophy), or willpower * Will (sociology) * Will, volition (psychology) * Will, a modal verb - see Shall and will ...

, Oklahoma as one of the four original squadrons of the

.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 294–295 The squadron trained under

Third Air Force The Third Air Force (Air Forces Europe) (3 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa (USAFE-AFAFRICA). Its headquarters is Ramstein Air Base, Germany. It is responsible for all U.S. air forces in E ...

in Oklahoma, Texas and Louisiana with

light bombardment aircraft. 409bg-a26

The squadron deployed to the

European Theater of Operations The European Theater of Operations, United States Army (ETOUSA) was a Theater of Operations responsible for directing United States Army operations throughout the European theatre of World War II, from 1942 to 1945. It commanded Army Ground For ...

in March 1944, where it became part of IX Bomber Command of

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 De ...

. The 641st initially flew sweeps over

Occupied France The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied zo ...

from its base in England, attacking coastal defenses,

V-1 flying bomb The V-1 flying bomb (german: Vergeltungswaffe 1 "Vengeance Weapon 1") was an early cruise missile. Its official Ministry of Aviation (Nazi Germany), Reich Aviation Ministry () designation was Fi 103. It was also known to the Allies as the buz ...

and

V-2 rocket The V-2 (german: Vergeltungswaffe 2, lit=Retaliation Weapon 2), with the technical name ''Aggregat 4'' (A-4), was the world’s first long-range guided ballistic missile. The missile, powered by a liquid-propellant rocket engine, was developed ...

sites,

airfield An aerodrome (Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for publ ...

s, and other targets in France in preparation for

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The operat ...

, the invasion of Normandy. After

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

, the squadron supported ground forces during the Battle of Normandy by hitting gun batteries, rail lines, bridges, communications, and other objectives. During July 1944, it aided the Allied offensive at

Caen Caen (, ; nrf, Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the department of Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inhabitants (), while its functional urban area has 470,000,Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.flak positions, fortified villages, and supply dumps. The squadron moved to

Advanced Landing Ground Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) were temporary advance airfields constructed by the Allies during World War II during the liberation of Europe. They were built in the UK prior to the invasion and thereafter in northwest Europe from 6 June 19 ...

s in France in September 1944, providing Third Army with

close air support In military tactics, close air support (CAS) is defined as air action such as air strikes by fixed or rotary-winged aircraft against hostile targets near friendly forces and require detailed integration of each air mission with fire and moveme ...

in its advance toward Germany through November. In December, the squadron converted to

Douglas A-26 Invader The Douglas A-26 Invader (designated B-26 between 1948 and 1965) is an American twin-engined light bomber and ground attack aircraft. Built by Douglas Aircraft Company during World War II, the Invader also saw service during several major Col ...

s. It then participated in the

Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive (military), offensive military campaign, campaign on the Western Front (World War II), Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted fr ...

by attacking lines of communications and

logistics Logistics is generally the detailed organization and implementation of a complex operation. In a general business sense, logistics manages the flow of goods between the point of origin and the point of consumption to meet the requirements of ...

. The squadron continued combat operations until May, flying its last combat mission against an

ammunition dump An ammunition dump, ammunition supply point (ASP), ammunition handling area (AHA) or ammunition depot is a military storage facility for live ammunition and explosives. The storage of live ammunition and explosives is inherently hazardous. Th ...

in Czechoslovakia on 3 May. The unit returned to the United States and initially was stationed at

Seymour Johnson Field Seymour Johnson Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Goldsboro, North Carolina. The base is named for U.S. Navy Lt. Seymour A. Johnson, a test pilot from Goldsboro who died in an airplane crash near Norbeck, Maryland, ...

, North Carolina where it prepared to deploy to the Pacific Theater of Operations for operations against the

Japanese Home Islands The Japanese archipelago (Japanese: 日本列島, ''Nihon rettō'') is a group of 6,852 islands that form the country of Japan, as well as the Russian island of Sakhalin. It extends over from the Sea of Okhotsk in the northeast to the East Chi ...

. The deployment to the Pacific Theater was cancelled with the

Surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...

in August. The 641st was inactivated at

, Massachusetts in early November.

Cold War

The 341st Air Refueling Squadron was activated in June 1955 at

, California, although it did not become operational until 20 July.Ravenstein, p. 130 After completing training with the 93d Bombardment Wing at Castle, the squadron moved to its permanent home at

, Maine where it was assigned to the

4060th Air Refueling Wing 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

. The squadron mission was to provide

for

(SAC) units. The squadron flew KC-97F and KC-97G Stratofreighters from activation in 1955 until it was discontinued in 1963. The 341st provided refueling support for SAC

wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expresse ...

deploying and redeploying from Europe and North Africa during

Operation Reflex Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

. It also deployed to locations such as

Ernest Harmon Air Force Base Ernest Harmon Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force base located in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador. The base was built by the United States Army Air Forces in 1941 under the Destroyers for Bases Agreement with the United Kin ...

, Newfoundland and

Thule Air Base Thule Air Base (pronounced or , kl, Qaanaaq Mitarfik, da, Thule Lufthavn), or Thule Air Base/Pituffik Airport , is the United States Space Force's northernmost base, and the northernmost installation of the U.S. Armed Forces, located north o ...

, Greenland. In 1960 the squadron transferred to the

4038th Strategic Wing The 397th Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit, last assigned to the 45th Air Division of Strategic Air Command at Dow Air Force Base, Maine, where it was inactivated on 25 April 1968. It was originally organized as the ...

, which replaced the 4060th wing at DowAbstract, History 820 Air Division Aug–Sep 1958
(retrieved 8 October 2013) as part of a SAC program to disperse its

Boeing B-52 Stratofortress The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress is an American long-range, subsonic, jet-powered strategic bomber. The B-52 was designed and built by Boeing, which has continued to provide support and upgrades. It has been operated by the United States Air ...

bombers over a larger number of bases, thus making it more difficult for the Soviet Union to knock out the entire fleet with a surprise first strike. During October and November 1962 the 341st temporarily curtailed training and assumed an increased alert posture in response to the

Cuban Missile Crisis The Cuban Missile Crisis, also known as the October Crisis (of 1962) ( es, Crisis de Octubre) in Cuba, the Caribbean Crisis () in Russia, or the Missile Scare, was a 35-day (16 October – 20 November 1962) confrontation between the United S ...

. The squadron became non-operational on 15 July 1963Ravenstein, p. 213 and was inactivated on 1 September as part of the phaseout of the KC-97 from SAC. The 641st Bombardment Squadron and the 341st Air Refueling Squadron were consolidated into a single unit on 19 September 1985 but the consolidated squadron has not been active.Department of the Air Force/MPM Letter 662q, 19 September 85, Subject: Reconstitution, Redesignation, and Consolidation of Selected Air Force Tactical Squadrons In 2001, the squadron was converted to provisional status as the 341st Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron.

Lineage

641st Bombardment Squadron * Constituted as the 641st Bombardment Squadron (Light) and activated, on 1 June 1943 * Redesignated 641st Bombardment Squadron, Light c. March 1944 : Inactivated on 7 November 1945Lineage, including stations and aircraft through 1945 in Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'' pp. 690–691 * Consolidated with the 341st Air Refueling Squadron, Medium on 19 September 1985 as the 341st Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy 341st Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron * Constituted as the 341st Air Refueling Squadron, Medium on 9 April 1955 : Activated on 11 June 1955Abstract, History 4060 Air Refueling Wing March 1958
(retrieved 9 October 2013) : Discontinued and inactivated on 1 September 1963 * Consolidated with the 641st Bombardment Squadron on 19 September 1985 as the 341st Air Refueling Squadron, Heavy (remained inactive) * Converted to provisional status and redesignated 341st Expeditionary Air Refueling Squadron on 5 February 2001

Assignments

* 409th Bombardment Group: 1 June 1943 – 7 November 1945 *

Fifteenth Air Force The Fifteenth Air Force (15 AF) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force's Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Shaw Air Force Base. It was reactivated on 20 August 2020, merging the previous units of the Ninth Air Force ...

: 11 June 1954 (attached to 93d Bombardment Wing) * 4060th Air Refueling Wing: 15 August 1955 * 4038th Strategic Wing: 1 February 1960 *

397th Bombardment Wing The 397th Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit, last assigned to the 45th Air Division of Strategic Air Command at Dow Air Force Base, Maine, where it was inactivated on 25 April 1968. It was originally organized as the 3 ...

: 1 February 1963 – 1 September 1963 *

United States Air Forces 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 fi ...

to activate or inactivate as needed after 5 February 2001

Stations

* Will Rogers Field, Oklahoma, 1 June 1943 *

Woodward Army Air Field West Woodward Airport is in Woodward County, Oklahoma, United States, seven miles west of Woodward, which owns it. The National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2015 called it a ''general aviation'' airport. History Second A ...

, Oklahoma, 2 October 1943 *

Pounds Army Air Field Pounds Army Air Field is a former United States Army Air Forces airfield, located west of Tyler, Texas. It was established in 1942 and assigned to Third Air Force. Its mission was the training of units, crews, and support individuals prior to ...

, Texas, 1 December 1943 *

DeRidder Army Air Base Beauregard Regional Airport is a public use airport in Beauregard Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is owned by Beauregard Parish and is located three nautical miles (6 km) southwest of the central business district of DeRidder, Louisiana ...

, Louisiana, 17 December 1943 – 10 February 1944 *

RAF Little Walden Royal Air Force Little Walden or more simply RAF Little Walden is a former Royal Air Force station primarily used by the United States Army Air Forces located north of Saffron Walden, Essex, England. The following units were here at some point: ...

(AAF-165), England, 7 March 1944 * Bretigny Airfield (A-48),Station number in Johnson France, 18 September 1944 * Laon-Couvron Airfield (A-70), 12 February 1945 – 25 June 1945 * Seymour Johnson Field, North Carolina, 15 August 1945 * Westover Field, Massachusetts, 6 October 1945 – 7 November 1945 * Castle Air Force Base, California, 11 June 1955Mueller, p. 76 * Dow Air Force Base, Maine, 14 August 1955 - 1 September 1963

Aircraft

* Douglas A-20 Havoc, 1943–1945 * Douglas A-26 Invader, 1945 * Boeing KC-97 Stratotanker, 1955–1963

Campaigns

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * *

External links

{{Strategic Air Command Air refueling squadrons of the United States Air Force Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations established in 1955 1955 establishments in the United States