HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

The Commandant of Cadets is a named organization 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 ...
based at the
Air Force Academy An air force academy or air academy is a national institution that provides initial officer training, possibly including undergraduate level education, to air force officer cadets who are preparing to be commissioned officers in a national air for ...
in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Until August 2006 The commander of the 34th Training Wing was "dual-hatted" as the Commandant of Cadets at the Academy. In that month the 34th Wing was became a named organization. The organization was first activated in 1941 as the 34th Bombardment Group. Following the
attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii ...
, the group briefly participated in
antisubmarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...
patrols. During most of 1942 and 1943, the group acted as a
heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...
training unit. In early 1944, the unit began preparations to move overseas. It served with Eighth Air Force in England, from April 1944 until the end of the war, converting form the Consolidated B-24 Liberator to the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress in the middle of combat operations. It returned to the United States after
VE Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easter ...
and was inactivated in August 1945. The 34th Tactical Group was activated in the early days of American participation in the
Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
. It trained
Republic of Vietnam Air Force The South Vietnam Air Force, officially the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF; vi, Không lực Việt Nam Cộng hòa, KLVNCH; french: Force aérienne vietnamienne, FAVN) (sometimes referred to as the Vietnam Air Force or VNAF) was the aer ...
airmen and engaged in combat operations and the operational testing of weapons and munitions until 1965, when the increasing American involvement in Vietnam caused it to be replaced by the larger 6251st Tactical Fighter Wing. In 1984 the 34th Bombardment Group and the 34th Tactical Group were consolidated into a single unit. The consolidated unit was redesignated the 34th Training Wing and activated in October 1994 at the
United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and U ...
, where it has served the Commandant of Cadets as the military training arm of the academy.


Mission

The mission of the Commandant of Cadets is to educate and train potential United States Air Force officers as the administrative organization responsible for cadet leadership and military training programs, instruction in military and airmanship courses, and general supervision of cadet life activities.


History


World War II

The group was first activated at
Langley Field Langley may refer to: People * Langley (surname), a common English surname, including a list of notable people with the name * Dawn Langley Simmons (1922–2000), English author and biographer * Elizabeth Langley (born 1933), Canadian perfo ...
, Virginia in January 1941 as the 34th Bombardment Group and equipped with a mixture of B-17C and B-17D Flying Fortresses and
Douglas B-18 Bolo The Douglas B-18 Bolo is an American heavy bomber which served with the United States Army Air Corps and the Royal Canadian Air Force (as the Digby) during the late 1930s and early 1940s. The Bolo was developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company ...
s. Its original squadrons were the 4th,
7th 7 (seven) is the natural number following 6 and preceding 8. It is the only prime number preceding a cube (algebra), cube. As an early prime number in the series of positive integers, the number seven has greatly symbolic associations in religion ...
, and 18th Bombardment Squadrons, while the
1st Reconnaissance Squadron The 1st Reconnaissance Squadron is a United States Air Force squadron, assigned to the 9th Operations Group, Beale Air Force Base, California. The 1st Reconnaissance Squadron is the United States military's oldest flying unit, first establish ...
) was initially assigned to
General Headquarters Air Force The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical ri ...
, but attached to the 34th Bombardment Group.Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', pp. 26–27Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 42Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 98Maurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', p. 480 The 34th Group moved to
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 four months after it was activated.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 87–89 After the
Pearl Harbor attack The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, ...
the group began
antisubmarine An anti-submarine weapon (ASW) is any one of a number of devices that are intended to act against a submarine and its crew, to destroy (sink) the vessel or reduce its capability as a weapon of war. In its simplest sense, an anti-submarine weapo ...
patrols off the Northeast coast of the United States, but soon became part of
Western Defense Command Western Defense Command (WDC) was established on 17 March 1941 as the command formation of the United States Army responsible for coordinating the defense of the Pacific Coast region of the United States during World War II. A second major respo ...
and moved to
Pendleton Field Eastern Oregon Regional Airport (Eastern Oregon Regional Airport at Pendleton) is a public airport three miles northwest of Pendleton, in Umatilla County, Oregon, United States. Commercial service is provided by Boutique Air to Portland, subsi ...
, Oregon. By the summer of 1942,
Second Air Force The Second Air Force (2 AF; ''2d Air Force'' in 1942) is a USAF numbered air force responsible for conducting basic military and technical training for Air Force enlisted members and non-flying officers. In World War II the CONUS unit defende ...
had become primarily a heavy bomber training force and the group became a B-17 Replacement Training Unit (RTU) at
Geiger Field Spokane International Airport is a commercial airport located approximately west-southwest of downtown Spokane, Washington, United States. It is the primary airport serving the Inland Northwest, which consists of 30 counties and includes are ...
. RTUs were oversized units which trained aircrews prior to their deployment to combat theaters. On 15 December 1942 the group moved to Blythe Army Air Base, California a base of the
Desert Training Center The Desert Training Center (DTC), also known as California–Arizona Maneuver Area (CAMA), was a World War II training facility established in the Mojave Desert and Sonoran Desert, largely in Southern California and Western Arizona in 1942. It ...
. The 34th provided cadres for a number of
heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...
groups that served with Eighth Air Force during this period. The 34th began training with Consolidated B-24 Liberators for overseas combat operations on 5 January 1944. The ground echelon moved to the port of embarkation on 1 April 1944, while the air echelon began its overseas movement on 31 May 1944, taking the southern ferry route, from Florida to Trinidad, Brazil, West Africa and Marrakesh, arriving at
RAF Valley Royal Air Force Valley or more simply RAF Valley ( cy, Llu Awyr Brenhinol Y Fali) is a Royal Air Force station on the island of Anglesey, Wales, and which is also used as Anglesey Airport. It provides both basic and advanced fast-jet training ...
, Wales.Freeman (1970), p. 240 The group arrived at its permanent station, RAF Mendlesham, England, in April 1944 and entered combat on 23 May 1944. The 34th flew 170 operations from Mendlesham, the first sixty-two while flying B-24H and B-24J Liberators and the remainder with B-17G Flying Fortresses. The group helped to prepare for Operation Overlord, the invasion of Normandy, by bombing
airfields 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 publi ...
in France and Germany, and supported the June landings by attacking coastal defenses and communications. It supported ground forces at
Saint-Lô Saint-Lô (, ; br, Sant Lo) is a commune in northwest France, the capital of the Manche department in the region of Normandy.
in late July and struck
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 ...
launch sites, gun emplacements, and supply lines throughout the summer of 1944. The mixture of B-24s and B-17s in the
3d Bombardment Division 3-D, 3D, or 3d may refer to: Science, technology, and mathematics Relating to three-dimensionality * Three-dimensional space ** 3D computer graphics, computer graphics that use a three-dimensional representation of geometric data ** 3D film, a ...
presented a number of operational problems, and in early 1944 plans had begun at
VIII Bomber Command 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of ...
headquarters to standardize the division with the Flying Fortress. The group flew its last B-24 mission on 24 August 1944. It transferred its Liberators for overhaul and eventual transfer to units of the 2d Bombardment Division, and began converting to B-17s and flew its first mission with the new planes on 17 September 1944. The 34th engaged primarily in bombardment of strategic objectives from October 1944 to February 1945. Targets included marshalling yards in Ludwigshafen, Hamm,
Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population ...
, and Darmstadt; oil centers in
Bielefeld Bielefeld () is a city in the Ostwestfalen-Lippe Region in the north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. With a population of 341,755, it is also the most populous city in the administrative region (''Regierungsbezirk'') of Detmold and the ...
,
Merseburg Merseburg () is a town in central Germany in southern Saxony-Anhalt, situated on the river Saale, and approximately 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a dioces ...
,
Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...
, and Misburg; factories in Berlin, Dalteln, and
Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...
; and airfields in
Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state di ...
,
Neumünster Neumünster () is a city in the middle of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. With more than 79,000 registered inhabitants, it is the fourth-largest municipality in Schleswig-Holstein (behind Kiel, Lübeck and Flensburg). History The city was fi ...
, and
Frankfurt Frankfurt, officially Frankfurt am Main (; Hessian: , " Frank ford on the Main"), is the most populous city in the German state of Hesse. Its 791,000 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located on it ...
. During this period the group also supported ground forces during the
Battle of the Bulge The Battle of the Bulge, also known as the Ardennes Offensive, was the last major German offensive campaign on the Western Front during World War II. The battle lasted from 16 December 1944 to 28 January 1945, towards the end of the war in ...
from December 1944 to January 1945. In March 1945, with few enemy industrial targets remaining and with Allied armies advancing across Germany, the 34th turned almost solely to interdicting enemy communications and supporting Allied ground forces. As training programs in the States accelerated, replacement crews arriving later in the war tended to be younger than those arriving earlier. One 34th crew, that of 2d Lt Joe Novick, was claimed to be the youngest in VIII Bomber Command. Lt Novicki was the "old man" at 21 and all other crew members were 19 or 20 years old in 1945. The 34th flew its last combat mission on 20 April 1945. After
V-E Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945, marking the official end of World War II in Europe in the Easte ...
the group flew six missions carrying food to flooded areas of the
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
and transported prisoners of war from German camps to Allied centers. The group redeployed to the United States in June and July 1945. The first elements of the air echelon departed 19 June 1945. The ground echelon sailed aboard the from
Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
on 6 August 1945. Upon arrival in the states, group personnel were given 30 days leave. The group reassembled at
Sioux Falls Army Air Field Sioux Falls Regional Airport , also known as Joe Foss Field, is a public and military use airport three miles northwest of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States. It is named in honor of aviator and Sioux Falls native Joe Foss, who later served a ...
, South Dakota, where it was inactivated on 28 August 1945.


Vietnam War

The 34th Tactical Group was activated in July 1963 to train
Republic of Vietnam Air Force The South Vietnam Air Force, officially the Republic of Vietnam Air Force (RVNAF; vi, Không lực Việt Nam Cộng hòa, KLVNCH; french: Force aérienne vietnamienne, FAVN) (sometimes referred to as the Vietnam Air Force or VNAF) was the aer ...
(VNAF) personnel in counter-insurgency operations. It trained VNAF strike pilots, forward air controllers, and observers. Its initial squadrons were the 1st Air Commando Squadron, a composite unit flying
Douglas B-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 at first, and the 19th Tactical Air Support Squadron, equipped with
Cessna O-1 Bird Dog The Cessna L-19/O-1 Bird Dog is a liaison and observation aircraft. It was the first all-metal fixed-wing aircraft ordered for and by the United States Army following the Army Air Forces' separation from it in 1947. The Bird Dog had a lengthy ...
s. Later, the 1st also operated
Helio U-10 Courier The Helio Courier is a cantilever high-wing light STOL utility aircraft designed in 1949. Around 500 of these aircraft were manufactured in Pittsburg, Kansas, from 1954 until 1974 by the Helio Aircraft Company. The design featured four leading ...
s,
North American T-28 Trojan The North American Aviation T-28 Trojan is a radial-engine military trainer aircraft manufactured by North American Aviation and used by the United States Air Force and United States Navy beginning in the 1950s. Besides its use as a trainer, ...
s and
Douglas C-47 Skytrain The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained ...
s. The Air Force intended to turn the 19th's Bird Dogs over to the VNAF, and the squadron was inactivated in August 1964. However, the Gulf of Tonkin incident altered these plans and the squadron was activated again in October. The squadron's forward air controllers became more critical as the war expanded into populated areas and it became necessary to minimize civilian casualties. Plans had also been made to withdraw the 1st Air Commando Squadron and transfer its aircraft to the VNAF after replacing its AT-28s and B-26s with A-1Hs, but these plans were cancelled. Due to age and hard use in combat, two AT-28s lost their wings and crashed in March and April 1964, while in June all B-26s were grounded. The 1st only remained operational by borrowing nine T-28Bs from the VNAF. These incidents confirmed the plan to convert the squadron's attack aircraft to the
Douglas A-1 Skyraider The Douglas A-1 Skyraider (formerly known as the AD Skyraider) is an American single-seat attack aircraft in service from 1946 to the early 1980s. The Skyraider had an unusually long career, remaining in front-line service well into the Jet Age ...
The 34th also flew combat missions, including close air support, fighter escort and
interdiction Interdiction is a military term for the act of delaying, disrupting, or destroying enemy forces or supplies en route to the battle area. A distinction is often made between strategic and tactical interdiction. The former refers to operations whose ...
,
psychological warfare Psychological warfare (PSYWAR), or the basic aspects of modern psychological operations (PsyOp), have been known by many other names or terms, including Military Information Support Operations (MISO), Psy Ops, political warfare, "Hearts and M ...
, aerial supply, forward air control and tactical liaison. It pioneered tactical
weapons A weapon, arm or armament is any implement or device that can be used to deter, threaten, inflict physical damage, harm, or kill. Weapons are used to increase the efficacy and efficiency of activities such as hunting, crime, law enforcement, s ...
and
munitions Ammunition (informally ammo) is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. Ammunition is both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines) and the component parts of other weap ...
, such as the
minigun The M134 Minigun is an American 7.62×51mm NATO six-barrel rotary machine gun with a high rate of fire (2,000 to 6,000 rounds per minute). It features a Gatling-style rotating barrel assembly with an external power source, normally an electric ...
, the daisycutter, and the gunship. In the fall of 1964, the 602d Fighter Squadron (Commando) was activated and assigned to the group. The Skyraider became the primary strike aircraft of the 1st and 602d Squadrons from this time. The group controlled its first jet aircraft in 1964 when
Martin B-57 Canberra The Martin B-57 Canberra is an American-built, twin-engined tactical bomber and reconnaissance aircraft that entered service with the United States Air Force (USAF) in 1953. The B-57 is a license-built version of the British English Electric ...
s of the
8th 8 (eight) is the natural number following 7 and preceding 9. In mathematics 8 is: * a composite number, its proper divisors being , , and . It is twice 4 or four times 2. * a power of two, being 2 (two cubed), and is the first number of t ...
and
13th Bombardment Squadron In music or music theory, a thirteenth is the note thirteen scale degrees from the root of a chord and also the interval between the root and the thirteenth. The interval can be also described as a compound sixth, spanning an octave pl ...
s, stationed at Clark Air Base in the Philippines began to rotate to Bien Hoa, where they were attached to the group for operations. These were the first USAF jets in Viet Nam. Prior to the passage of the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, the United States had interpreted the Geneva Accords as prohibiting jet combat aircraft from former French Indochina. On the night of 1 November,
Viet Cong , , war = the Vietnam War , image = FNL Flag.svg , caption = The flag of the Viet Cong, adopted in 1960, is a variation on the flag of North Vietnam. Sometimes the lower stripe was green. , active ...
located just outside the perimeter of Bien Hoa attacked the base with mortars, destroying five B-57s and damaging an additional 15. Aircrews of the 1st Air Commando Squadron performed the first combat tests of the FC-47 (later
Douglas AC-47 Spooky The Douglas AC-47 Spooky (also nicknamed "Puff, the Magic Dragon") was the first in a series of fixed-wing gunships developed by the United States Air Force during the Vietnam War. It was designed to provide more firepower than light and mediu ...
) gunship beginning in December 1964. As more Air Force units moved to Bien Hoa, the 6251st Tactical Fighter Wing replaced the group in July 1965, and the 34th was inactivated.


Cadet training

In September 1985, the 34th Bombardment Group and the 34th Tactical Group were consolidated into a single unit. In late 1994, the consolidated unit was redesignated the 34th Training Wing and activated with two assigned groups as the administrative organization responsible for cadet leadership and military training programs under the supervision of the Commandant of Cadets at the
United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and U ...
. It is responsible for instruction in military and general supervision of cadet life activities. Until October 2004 it also provided airmanship courses. Its 34th Operations Group was inactivated in 2004 and its airmanship training mission became the responsibility of the
306th Flying Training Group The 306th Flying Training Group (306 FTG) is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The group is stationed at the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) near Colorado Springs, Colorado. ...
of
Air Education and Training Command Air Education and Training Command (AETC) is one of the nine List of major commands of the United States Air Force, Major Commands (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force (USAF), reporting to Headquarters, United States Air Force. It was establis ...
. In 2006, it reorganized and its 34th Education Group was inactivated and replaced by four Cadet Groups.Research Division, Air Force Historical Research Agency, Air Force Organization Change Status Report, August 2006, Maxwell AFB, AL


Lineage

; 34th Bombardment Group * Established as the 34th Bombardment Group (Heavy) on 20 November 1940 : Activated on 15 January 1941 : Redesignated 34th Bombardment Group, c. 15 February 1944 : Inactivated on 28 August 1945 * Consolidated with the 34th Tactical Group as the 34th Tactical Group on 31 January 1984Lineage information, including assignments, stations, components, and aircraft, in Warnock, Factsheet 34 Training Wing, except as noted ; 34th Training Wing * Established as the 34th Tactical Group and activated, on 19 June 1963 (not organized) : Organized on 8 July 1963 : Discontinued and inactivated on 8 July 1965 * Consolidated with the 34th Bombardment Group on 31 January 1984 ; Consolidated unit * Redesignated 34th Training Wing on 30 September 1994 : Activated on 31 October 1994 : Redesignated Commandant of Cadets on 30 August 2006


Assignments

*
2d Bombardment Wing The 2nd Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command and the Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana. The wing is also the host unit at Barksdale. The wing was a ...
, 15 January 1941 * 4th Bombardment Wing, 3 June 1941 *
I Bomber Command The I Bomber Command (later XX Bomber Command) was an intermediate command of the Army Air Forces during World War II. It trained bombardment units and aircrews for deployment to combat theaters. From shortly after the attack on Pearl Harbor ...
, 5 September 1941 * 2d (later, Second) Air Force, 27 January 1942 *
16th Bombardment Training Wing HV-016 is a former military unit of Norway, that was a part of the Home Guard. It was established after 1985 to "stop terror- or sabotage actions that could weaken or paralyze Norway's ability to mobilize its military and its ability to resist". ...
(later, 16 Bombardment Operational Training Wing), c. 15 December 1942 *
93d Combat Bombardment Wing The 93d Bombardment Wing is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the Second Air Force, based at Sioux Falls Army Air Field, South Dakota. It was inactivated on 28 August 1945. The wing was a command and control o ...
, c. 26 April 1944 *
45th Combat Bombardment Wing The 45th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Eighth Air Force at Pease Air Force Base, New Hampshire. It was inactivated on 14 June 1989. History As the 45th Bombardment Wing, the unit was one ...
, 24 May 1945 * 20th Bombardment Wing, 18 June – 28 August 1945 *
Pacific Air Forces Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) is a Major Command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force and is also the air component command of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM). PACAF is headquartered at Joint Base Pearl Harbor–Hickam (f ...
, 19 June 1963 (not organized) *
2d Air Division The 2nd Air Division (2nd AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Military Airlift Command, assigned to Twenty-Third Air Force, being stationed at Hurlburt Field, Florida. It started operations on 7 ...
, 8 July 1963 – 8 July 1965 *
United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and U ...
, 31 October 1994 – present


Components

Groups * 34th Operations Group: 31 October 1994 – 4 October 2004 * 34th Education Group: 7 November 1994 – 1 August 2006 * 1st Cadet Group: 1 August 2006 – present * 2d Cadet Group: 1 August 2006 – present * 3d Cadet Group: 1 August 2006 – present * 4th Cadet Group: 1 August 2006 – present Squadrons * 1st Reconnaissance (Squadron later
391st Bombardment Squadron 391st may refer to: *391st Bombardment Group, non-flying unit of the Pennsylvania Air National Guard, stationed at Horsham Air National Guard Station * 391st Bombardment Squadron, part of the 6th Air Mobility Wing at MacDill Air Force Base, Florida ...
): attached 15 January 1941 – 24 February 1942, assigned 25 February 1942 – 28 August 1945 * 1st Air Commando Squadron: 8 July 1963 – 8 July 1965 * 4th Bombardment Squadron: 15 January 1941 – 28 August 1945 *
7th Bombardment Squadron The 7th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was last assigned to the 34th Bombardment Group at Sioux Falls Army Air Field, South Dakota, where it was inactivated on 28 August 1945. The squadron was activated in ...
: 15 January 1941 – 28 August 1945 * 8th Bombardment Squadron: attached 5 August – 3 November 1964 * 13th Bombardment Squadron: attached 5 August – 3 November 1964; 17 February – 16 May 1965 * 18th Bombardment Squadron: 15 January 1941 – 28 August 1945 * 19th Tactical Air Support Squadron: 8 July 1963 – 8 August 1964; 21 October 1964 – 8 July 1965 * 602d Fighter Squadron (Commando): 18 October 1964 – 8 July 1965


Stations

* Langley Field, Virginia, 15 January 1941 * Westover Field, Massachusetts, 29 May 1941 * Pendleton Field, Oregon, 27 January 1942 * Davis-Monthan Field, Arizona, 13 May 1942 * Geiger Field, Washington, 4 July 1942 *
Ephrata Army Air Base Ephrata Municipal Airport is a public use airport located southeast of the central business district of Ephrata, a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. It is included in the National Plan of Integrated Airport Systems for 2011–2 ...
, Washington, 1 December 1942 * Bishop Army Air Field, California, 15 December 1942 – April 1944 * RAF Mendlesham (USAAF Station 156), England, 26 April 1944-c. 25 July 1945 *
Sioux Falls Army Air Field Sioux Falls Regional Airport , also known as Joe Foss Field, is a public and military use airport three miles northwest of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, United States. It is named in honor of aviator and Sioux Falls native Joe Foss, who later served a ...
, South Dakota, Aug-28 August 1945 * Bien Hoa Air Base, South Vietnam, 8 July 1963 – 8 July 1965 * United States Air Force Academy, Colorado, 31 October 1994 – present


Aircraft

* Boeing B-17C Flying Fortress (1941–1942) * Boeing B-17D Flying Fortress (1941–1942) * Boeing B-17G Flying Fortress (1944–1945) * Douglas B-18 Bolo (1941) * Consolidated B-24H Liberator (1942–1944) * Consolidated B-24J Liberator (1942–1944) * Douglas B-26 Invader (1963–1964) * Martin B-57 Canberra (1964–1965) * Cessna O-1 Bird Dog (1963–1965) * Helio U-10 Courier (1963–1965) * North American T-28 Trojan (1963–1964) * Douglas C-47 Skytrain (1963–1965) * Douglas AC-47 Spooky (1964–1965) * Douglas A-1 Skyraider (1964–1965) *
Cessna T-41 Mescalero The Cessna T-41 Mescalero is a military version of the popular Cessna 172, operated by the United States Air Force and Army, as well as the armed forces of various other countries as a pilot-training aircraft. Design and development In 1964, ...
, (1994–2004)This source fails to reflect the transfer of the 557th Flying Training Squadron from the 12th Operations Group to the 34th Operations Group in 1994. It was transferred from the 34th to the 306th Flying Training Group in 2004. Research Division, Air Force Historical Research Agency, Air Force Organization Change Status Report, October 2004, Maxwell AFB, AL * Cessna T-51, (1995–2004) * de Havilland Canada UV-18 Twin Otter (1994–2004)


Awards and campaigns


See also

* Commandant of Cadets of the United States Air Force Academy * B-17 Flying Fortress units of the United States Army Air Forces *
B-24 Liberator units of the United States Army Air Forces This is a list of United States Army Air Forces B-24 Liberator combat units during World War II including variants and other historical information. Heavy bomber training organizations primarily under II Bomber Command in the United States and ...
*
List of B-57 units of the United States Air Force The Martin B-57 Canberra was first manufactured in 1953, and the United States Air Force had accepted a total of 403 B-57s before production ended in early 1957. The last USAF B-57 was retired in 1983. It was the last tactical bomber used by th ...
* List of Douglas A-1 Skyraider operators *
List of Douglas A-26 Invader operators The List of Douglas A-26 Invader operators lists the nations, their air force units, and civilian companies that have operated the Douglas A-26 Invader (re-designated B-26 Invader after 1947): Military operators Angola ;Angolan Air Force The A ...
*
List of Douglas C-47 Skytrain operators List of C-47 Skytrain operators includes the country, military service, known squadrons, and related data. The Skytrain or Dakota is a military transport that was developed from the Douglas DC-3 airliner. The C-47 has served with over 90 cou ...


References


Notes


Citations


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * ; Further reading * Freeman, Roger A. (1978) ''Airfields of the Eighth: Then and Now''. After the Battle * Freeman, Roger A. (1991) ''The Mighty Eighth: The Colour Record''. Cassell & Co.


External links

{{Navboxes , list = {{USAF Vietnam War {{USAAF 8th Air Force UK {{USAAF 2d Air Force World War II {{USAAF 1st Air Force World War II Military units and formations in Colorado United States Air Force Academy 0034 American Theater of World War II