The 429th Air Refueling Squadron is 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. It was last assigned to the 4505th Air Refueling Wing at

Langley Air Force Base Langley Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Hampton, Virginia, adjacent to Newport News, Virginia, Newport News. It was one of List of airfields of the Training Section of the United States Army Air Service, thirty-two ...

, Virginia, where it was inactivated on 8 October 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 activated in 1954 by

Tactical Air Command Tactical Air Command (TAC) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. It was a Major Command of the United States Air Force, established on 21 March 1946 and headquartered at Langley Air Force Base, Virginia. It was inactivated on 1 J ...

(TAC) to provide a dedicated

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 ...

capability, initially for

F-100 Super Sabre The North American F-100 Super Sabre is an American supersonic jet fighter aircraft that served with the United States Air Force (USAF) from 1954 to 1971 and with the Air National Guard (ANG) until 1979. The first of the Century Series of ...

s and later for other air refueling capable TAC fighter and fighter bombers. The 429th was initially equipped with Boeing KB-29M Superfortresses, modified bombers equipped with a British-developed hose air refueling systems and transferred from

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 ...

(SAC). The 429th retired its KB-29s by November 1957, and was fully equipped with

Boeing KB-50 The Boeing B-50 Superfortress is an American strategic bomber. A post–World War II revision of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, it was fitted with more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 radial engines, stronger structure, a taller tail fin, and o ...

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. Even before the change to KB-50s was complete, in September 1957, the 429th sent the first KB-50 in the Air Force 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 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, in 1960 the Air Force announced that

(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. In October 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) ass ...

, Arizona.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 429th Air Refueling Squadron, Fighter-Bomber on 1 July 1954 : Activated on 19 July 1954 : Redesignated as 429th Air Refueling Squadron, Tactical on 1 July 1958 : Discontinued and inactivated on 8 October 1963 * Consolidated on 19 September 1985 with the

129th Strategic Reconnaissance Squadron 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

as the 969th Airborne Warning and Control SquadronDepartment of the Air Force/MPM Letter 662q, 19 Sep 85, Subject: Reconstitution, Redesignation, and Consolidation of Selected Air Force Tactical Squadrons (remained inactive)

Assignments

, 19 July 1954 (attached to 405th Fighter-Bomber Wing)Ravenstein, p. 275 *

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 ...

, 1954 (remained attached to 405th Fighter-Bomber Wing) * 4505th Air Refueling Wing, 1 July 1958 – 8 October 1963

Stations

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 19 ...

, Virginia, 19 July 1954 – 8 October 1963Mueller, p. 316

Aircraft

* Boeing KB-29M Superfortress, 1954–1957 *

Boeing KB-50 Superfortress The Boeing B-50 Superfortress is an American strategic bomber. A post–World War II revision of the Boeing B-29 Superfortress, it was fitted with more powerful Pratt & Whitney R-4360 radial engines, stronger structure, a taller tail fin, and ot ...

, 1957–1958 * Boeing KB-50J Superfortress, 1958–1963

References

Notes

Bibliography

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External links

* {{USAF air refueling units Air refueling squadrons of the United States Air Force