The 368th Expeditionary Air Support Operations Group is a combat support 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 ...

. The

group A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

provides overall tactical command and control of air power assets to the

Joint Forces Air Component Commander Joint force air component commander (JFACC) is a United States Department of Defense doctrinal term. It is pronounced "Jay-Fack". It refers to a senior officer who is responsible for the air forces within a joint force; i.e., a military force com ...

and Joint Forces Commander for combat operations.

History

Tactical Air Command

The group was first activated at

Shaw Air Force Base Shaw Air Force Base (Shaw AFB) is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located approximately west-northwest of downtown Sumter, South Carolina. It is one of the largest military bases operated by the United States, and is under the jurisdict ...

, South Carolina as the 68th Tactical Air Support Group in January 1970, when it assumed the mission, personnel and equipment of the 4467th Tactical Air Support Group, which was simultaneously discontinued. The group trained and equipped tactical air support squadrons and tactical air control parties to control aircraft and communications systems in support of surface forces including tactical air strikes, reconnaissance and airlift. It was inactivated in 1974 and its mission transferred to the 507th Tactical Air Control Wing, which combined tactical control and tactical air support units for

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 ...

Expeditionary unit

During Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn it was located at an undisclosed location in

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

(possibly

Joint Base Balad A joint or articulation (or articular surface) is the connection made between bones, ossicles, or other hard structures in the body which link an animal's skeletal system into a functional whole.Saladin, Ken. Anatomy & Physiology. 7th ed. McGraw ...

). It supported

Multi-National Corps - Iraq Multinational may refer to: * Multinational corporation, a corporate organization operating in multiple countries * Multinational force, a military body from multiple countries * Multinational state, a sovereign state that comprises two or more na ...

. As of 26 July 2010, it comprised two subordinate units: * 22d Expeditionary Weather Squadron * 82d Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron The group was inactivated on 22 December 2011 following the withdraw of US forces from Iraq and the cessation of Operation New Dawn. In May 2015 the group was activated in support of Operation Inherent Resolve and Operation Spartan Shield. It is currently composed of four subordinate units: *Detachment 1, Army Weather Support *Detachment 2, Air Support Operations Center * 72d Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron * 82d Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron

Lineage

* Established as the 68th Tactical Air Support Group on 2 December 1969 : Activated on 15 January 1970 : Inactivated on 15 June 1974 * Redesignated 368th Tactical Air Support Group on 31 July 1985 * Redesignated 368th Expeditionary Air Support Operations Group and converted to provisional status on 12 February 2009. : Activated by 20 July 2010 : Inactivated c. 18 December 2011 : Activated May 2015

Assignments

, 15 January 1970 – 15 June 1974 * Air Combat Command to activate or inactivate at any time on or after 12 February 2009

Components

* Air Education and Training Command Studies and Analysis Squadron, 31 August 1972 – 1 July 1974 * 22d Expeditionary Weather Squadron, by July 2010 – c. 18 November 2011 * 72d Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron, May 2015 * 82d Expeditionary Air Support Operations Squadron, by July 2010 – c. 18 November 2011, May 2015 *

424th Tactical Air Support Training Squadron The 424th Tactical Air Support Training Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with the 68th Tactical Air Support Group at Eglin Air Force Base, Florida, where the unit was inactivated on 31 March 1944. ...

, 1 January–31 October 1972 * 681st Direct Air Support Center Squadron, 1 December 1971 – 1 July 1974 * 682d Direct Air Support Center Squadron, 1 December 1971 – 1 July 1974 * 703d Special Operations Squadron (later 703d Tactical Air Support Squadron), 15 January 1970 – 15 June 1974 * 704th Tactical Air Support Squadron, 15 January 1970 – 15 June 1974

Aircraft

Cessna O-2 Skymaster The Cessna O-2 Skymaster (nicknamed "Oscar Deuce") is a military version of the Cessna 337 Super Skymaster, used for forward air control (FAC) and psychological operations (PSYOPS) by the US military between 1967 and 2010. Design and develo ...

, 1970–1974 *

Sikorsky CH-53 The CH-53 Sea Stallion (Sikorsky S-65) is an American family of heavy-lift transport helicopters designed and built by the American manufacturer Sikorsky Aircraft. It was originally developed in response to a request from the United States N ...

, 1970–1973 * Sikorsky CH-3, 1970–1974 *

Beechcraft QU-22 Pave Eagle The Beechcraft Bonanza is an American general aviation aircraft introduced in 1947 by Beechcraft, Beech Aircraft Corporation of Wichita, Kansas. The six-seater, single-engined aircraft is still being produced by Beechcraft and has been in con ...

, 1972 *

North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco The North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco is an American twin-turboprop light attack and observation aircraft. It was developed in the 1960s as a special aircraft for counter-insurgency (COIN) combat, and one of its primary missions was as a forw ...

, 1974

References

; Notes

Bibliography

Air ground operations units of the United States Air Force Groups of the United States Air Force {{USAF-stub