The 427th Air Refueling Squadron is an inactive

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 ...

unit. It was last assigned to the 4505th Air Refueling Wing at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia, where it was inactivated on 1 April 1963.

History

The

squadron Squadron may refer to: * Squadron (army), a military unit of cavalry, tanks, or equivalent subdivided into troops or tank companies * Squadron (aviation), a military unit that consists of three or four flights with a total of 12 to 24 aircraft, ...

was established in 1956 by Tactical Air Command (TAC) to provide dedicated in-flight refueling, initially for F-100 Super Sabres, and later for other air refueling capable TAC fighters and fighter bombers. The 427th was initially equipped with Boeing KB-29M Superfortresses transferred from Strategic Air Command (SAC). These aircraft were converted from

bomber A bomber is a military combat aircraft designed to attack ground and naval targets by dropping air-to-ground weaponry (such as bombs), launching torpedoes, or deploying air-launched cruise missiles. The first use of bombs dropped from an air ...

s to tankers using a British-developed hose refueling system. The 427th retired its KB-29s by November 1957, and was fully equipped with Boeing KB-50 tankers by the end of the year. These were existing B-50A, B-50D or RB-50 aircraft with armament removed and equipped with a probe and drogue refueling system installed by

Hayes Aircraft Corporation Hayes may refer to: * Hayes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th president of the United States * Hayes (given name) Businesses * Hayes Brake, an American designer and manufacturer of disc brakes * Haye ...

, and capable of refueling three fighters at the same time. The squadron began to send KB-50s to be modified to KB-50J configuration. These tankers added a

General Electric J47 The General Electric J47 turbojet (GE company designation TG-190) was developed by General Electric from its earlier J35. It first flew in May 1948. The J47 was the first axial-flow turbojet approved for commercial use in the United States. It ...

turbojet engine underneath each wing to increase the speed and altitude capability of the aircraft. The unit's KB-50Js proved difficult to maintain to meet operational commitments, and modification of the aircraft to improve them would not be economical in view of their expected service life. Although TAC wanted to replace them with Boeing KC-135 Stratotankers, in 1960 the Air Force announced that Strategic Air Command (SAC) would become the Air Force's single manager for air refueling. TAC's KB-50s would be phased out by 1964, while SAC would acquire additional KC-135s to support TAC.Knaack, p. 194 In April 1963, the 429th inactivated, and its KB-50Js were sent to the

Military Aircraft Storage and Disposition Center A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

Davis–Monthan Air Force Base Davis–Monthan Air Force Base (DM AFB) is a United States Air Force base southeast of downtown Tucson, Arizona. It was established in 1925 as Davis–Monthan Landing Field. The host unit for Davis–Monthan AFB is the 355th Wing (355 WG) assi ...

, Arizona.

Lineage

* Constituted as 427th Air Refueling Squadron, Fighter-Bomber on 1 September 1956 : Activated on 7 September 1956 : Redesignated 427th Air Refueling Squadron, Tactical on 1 July 1958 : Discontinued and inactivated on 1 April 1963

Assignments

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 ...

, 7 September 1956 *

Eighteenth Air Force Eighteenth Air Force (Air Forces Transportation) (18 AF) is the only Numbered Air Force (NAF) in Air Mobility Command (AMC) and one of the largest NAFs in the United States Air Force. 18 AF was activated on 28 March 1951, inactivated on 1 Janu ...

, 1 October 1957 *

Twelfth Air Force The Twelfth Air Force (12 AF; Air Forces Southern, (AFSOUTH)) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Davis–Monthan Air Force Base, Arizona. The command is the air component to ...

, 1 January 1958 * 4505th Air Refueling Wing, 1 July 1958 – 1 April 1963 (not operational after 9 January 1963)

Stations

Robins AFB Robins Air Force Base is a major United States Air Force installation located in Houston County, Georgia, United States. The base is located just east of the city of Warner Robins, south-southeast of Macon and approximately south-southeast ...

, Georgia, 7 September 1956 *

Langley AFB Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News. It was one of thirty-two Air Service training camps established after the entry of the United States into World War I in April 1 ...

, Virginia, 20 August 1958 – 1 April 1963

Aircraft

* KB-29M Superfortress, 1956–1959 * KB-50/KB-50J Superfortress, 1959–1963

References

Notes

Bibliography

External links

TacTankers.com – 427th Air Refueling Squadron
{{Tactical Air Command

427 __NOTOC__ Year 427 (Roman numerals, CDXXVII) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Hierus and Ardabur (or, less frequen ...

Military units and formations established in 1956 Military units and formations disestablished in 1961 1956 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) 1961 disestablishments in Virginia