The 302d Fighter Squadron is part of the

Air Force Reserve Command The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of commis ...

477th Fighter Group The 477th Fighter Group is an Air Reserve unit of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the Tenth Air Force, Air Force Reserve Command, stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf–Richardson, Alaska. The 477th FG is an associate unit of the 3 ...

Elmendorf Air Force Base Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) facility in Anchorage, Alaska. Originally known as Elmendorf Field, it became Elmendorf Air Force Base after World War II. It is the home of the Headquarters, Alaskan Air Command (AL ...

, Alaska. It operates the

Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is an American single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). As the result of the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, th ...

conducting an air superiority mission.

Mission

The 302d Fighter Squadron trains in the fighter missions of

offensive counter air Offensive counter-air (OCA) is a military term for the suppression of an enemy's military air power, primarily through ground attacks targeting enemy air bases: disabling or destroying parked aircraft, runways, fuel facilities, hangars, air traffi ...

, defensive counter-air as well as strategic attack and interdiction.

History

World War II

The 302d was one of four African-American fighter squadrons to enter combat during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. It saw combat in 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 ...

and

Mediterranean Theater of Operations The Mediterranean Theater of Operations, United States Army (MTOUSA), originally called the North African Theater of Operations, United States Army (NATOUSA), was a military formation of the United States Army that supervised all U.S. Army for ...

from 17 February 1944 – 20 February 1945.

Air force reserve

From 1956 to 1974, the squadron was assigned to the

Air Force Reserve The Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC) is a major command (MAJCOM) of the United States Air Force, with its headquarters at Robins Air Force Base, Georgia. It is the federal Air Reserve Component (ARC) of the U.S. Air Force, consisting of comm ...

where it trained for and performed

search and rescue Search and rescue (SAR) is the search for and provision of aid to people who are in distress or imminent danger. The general field of search and rescue includes many specialty sub-fields, typically determined by the type of terrain the search ...

in addition to

aeromedical evacuation Aeromedical evacuation (AE) usually refers to the use of military transport aircraft to carry wounded personnel. The first recorded British ambulance flight took place in 1917 in the Sinai peninsula some 30 miles south of El Arish when a Royal ...

missions, mainly in the southwestern United States. 302d Fighter Squadron General Dynamics F-16D Block 32H Fighting Falcon 87-0381

In 1974, its mission changed to training for a combat search and rescue role, while continuing to perform traditional humanitarian/non-combat search and rescue. The squadron's mission changed again in 1987 to a fighter role, training for counterair, interdiction, and

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 movemen ...

missions. The unit that had been the 302d was reflagged as the

71st Special Operations Squadron The 71st Special Operations Squadron is part of the 58th Special Operations Wing at Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. It operates Bell Boeing CV-22 Osprey conducting special operations flying training. Mission Provide Combat Ready CV-22 Ai ...

and physically relocated to Davis-Monthan AFB, AZ. Concurrently, a new AFRES fighter squadron was established at

Luke AFB Luke Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States., effective 20 December 2007 It is located west of the central business district of Glendale, and west of Phoenix. Luke AFB is a major trainin ...

, AZ and took over the 302d lineage as the 302d Tactical Fighter Squadron. With the transition of AFRES to

(AFRC), the squadron deployed several times since late 1992 to

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

to help enforce the

no-fly zone A no-fly zone, also known as a no-flight zone (NFZ), or air exclusion zone (AEZ), is a territory or area established by a military power over which certain aircraft are not permitted to fly. Such zones are usually set up in an enemy power's te ...

over

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 Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

and to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

to support UN air operations in the

Balkans The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

. In 2007, the squadron relocated from Luke AFB to

Elmendorf AFB Elmendorf Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) facility in Anchorage, Alaska. Originally known as Elmendorf Field, it became Elmendorf Air Force Base after World War II. It is the home of the Headquarters, Alaskan Air Command (AL ...

, AK and transitioned from the

F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine 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 successf ...

to the

F-22 Raptor The Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor is an American single-seat, twin-engine, all-weather stealth tactical fighter aircraft developed for the United States Air Force (USAF). As the result of the USAF's Advanced Tactical Fighter (ATF) program, th ...

, which it operates as an Associate AFRC unit the active duty Air Force's

3rd Wing The 3rd Wing is a unit of the United States Air Force, assigned to the Pacific Air Forces (PACAF) Eleventh Air Force. It is stationed at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. The Wing is the largest and principal unit within 11th Air Forc ...

Lineage

; 302d Fighter Squadron (World War II) * Constituted as the 302d Fighter Squadron on 4 July 1942 : Activated on 13 October 1942 : Redesignated 302d Fighter Squadron, Single Engine on 21 August 1944 : Inactivated on 6 Mar 1945 * Consolidated with the 302d Special Operations Squadron as the 302d Special Operations Squadron on 19 September 1985 ; 302d Fighter Squadron * Constituted as the 302d Air Rescue Squadron on 1 August 1956 : Activated in the reserve on 8 October 1956 : Redesignated 302d Aerospace Rescue and Recovery Squadron on 18 January 1966 : Redesignated 302d Special Operations Squadron on 10 April 1974 : Consolidated with the 302d Fighter Squadron on 19 September 1985 : Redesignated 302 Tactical Fighter Squadron on 1 July 1987 : Redesignated 302d Fighter Squadron on 1 February 1992

Assignments

332d Fighter Group 33 may refer to: *33 (number) *33 BC *AD 33 *1933 *2033 Music * ''33'' (Luis Miguel album) (2003) * ''33'' (Southpacific album) (1998) * ''33'' (Wanessa album) (2016) *"33 'GOD'", a 2016 song by Bon Iver * "Thirty-Three" (song), a 1995 song by th ...

, 13 October 1942 – 6 March 1945 * 2348th Air Reserve Flying Center, 8 October 1956 *

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 ...

, 24 June 1960 * Sixth Air Force Reserve Region, 1 September 1960 * Western Air Force Reserve Region, 31 December 1969 *

Tenth Air Force The Tenth Air Force (10 AF) is a unit of the U.S. Air Force, specifically a numbered air force of the Air Force Reserve Command (AFRC). 10 AF is headquartered at Naval Air Station Fort Worth Joint Reserve Base/Carswell Field (formerly Carswel ...

, 8 October 1976 * Fourth Air Force, 1 March 1983 * 944th Tactical Fighter Group (later 944 Fighter Group), 1 July 1987 * 944th Operations Group, 1 August 1992 *

, 1 October 2007 – present

Stations

* Tuskegee Army Air Field, Alabama, 13 October 1942 *

Selfridge Field Selfridge Air National Guard Base or Selfridge ANGB is an Air National Guard installation located in Harrison Township, Michigan, near Mount Clemens. Selfridge Field was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the Unit ...

, Michigan, 29 March 1943 *

Oscoda Army Air Field Oscoda may refer to: * Oscoda, Michigan, an unincorporated community in Iosco County * Oscoda County, Michigan * Oscoda Township, Michigan Oscoda Township is a charter township of Iosco County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was ...

, Michigan, 19 November 1943 *

, Michigan, 1–22 December 1943 *

Taranto Taranto (, also ; ; nap, label=Tarantino, Tarde; Latin: Tarentum; Old Italian: ''Tarento''; Ancient Greek: Τάρᾱς) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Taranto, serving as an important comme ...

, Italy, 1 February 1944 * Montecorvino Airfield, Italy, 7 February 1944 *

Capodichino Airport San Pietro a Patierno is a suburb of Naples, the chief city in Campania, Italy. Geography It is one of the largest suburbs of Naples and is relatively lightly populated compared to surrounding areas, with around 20,000 residents. The district of ...

, Italy, 6 March 1944 * Ramitelli Airfield, Italy, c. 28 May 1944 – 6 March 1945 *

Williams Air Force Base Williams Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force (USAF) base, located in Maricopa County, Arizona, east of Chandler, and about southeast of Phoenix. It is a designated Superfund site due to a number of soil and groundwater contamin ...

, Arizona, 8 October 1956 *

Luke Air Force Base Luke Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base in Maricopa County, Arizona, United States., effective 20 December 2007 It is located west of the central business district of Glendale, and west of Phoenix. Luke AFB is a major traini ...

, Arizona, 23 October 1960 *

, Alaska, 1 Oct 2007 – present

Aircraft

Bell P-39 Airacobra The Bell P-39 Airacobra is a fighter produced by Bell Aircraft for the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. It was one of the principal American fighters in service when the United States entered combat. The P-39 was used by t ...

(1943–1944) *

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 an ...

(1943) *

Republic P-47 Thunderbolt The Republic P-47 Thunderbolt is a World War II-era fighter aircraft produced by the American company Republic Aviation from 1941 through 1945. It was a successful high-altitude fighter and it also served as the foremost American fighter-bomber ...

(1944) *

North American P-51 Mustang The North American Aviation P-51 Mustang is an American long-range, single-seat fighter and fighter-bomber used during World War II and the Korean War, among other conflicts. The Mustang was designed in April 1940 by a team headed by James ...

(1944–1945) *

Grumman HU-16 Albatross The Grumman HU-16 Albatross is a large, twin–radial engined amphibious seaplane that was used by the United States Air Force (USAF), the U.S. Navy (USN), and the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG), primarily as a search and rescue (SAR) aircraft. Origi ...

(1956–1971) * HH-34 Choctaw (1971–1974) * CH-3 Sea King (1974–1987) * HH-3 Jolly Green Giant (1985–1987) *

General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon The General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon is a single-engine 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 success ...

(1987–2007) *

(2007 – present)

References

Notes

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * {{US Air Force navbox 302 Military units and formations in Alaska Fighter squadrons of the United States Army Air Forces