The 17th Defense Systems Evaluation 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 24th Air Division of

Aerospace Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command of the United States Air Force, responsible for continental air defense. It was activated in 1968 and disbanded in 1980. Its predecessor, Air Defense Command, was established in 1946, briefly ina ...

Malmstrom AFB Malmstrom Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base and census-designated place (CDP) in Cascade County, Montana, United States, adjacent to the city of Great Falls. It was named in honor of World War II POW Colonel Einar Axel Malmstrom. ...

, Montana. It was inactivated on 13 July 1979. 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 first activated 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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Wheeler Field Wheeler Army Airfield , also known as Wheeler Field and formerly as Wheeler Air Force Base, is a United States Army post located in the City & County of Honolulu and in the Wahiawa District of the Island of O'ahu, Hawaii. It is a National His ...

, Territory of Hawaii. It provided gunnery training to fighter aircraft of

Seventh Air Force The Seventh Air Force (Air Forces Korea) (7 AF) is a Numbered Air Force of the United States Pacific Air Forces (PACAF). It is headquartered at Osan Air Base, South Korea. The command's mission is to plan and direct air component operations in ...

until being inactivated in the post war reduction of the United States military. The squadron was again activated under Air Defense Command (ADC) at Vincent Air Force Base, Arizona in 1955 as an element of the 4750th Air Defense Wing. It moved with the wing to

MacDill AFB MacDill Air Force Base (MacDill AFB) is an active United States Air Force installation located 4 miles (6.4 km) south-southwest of downtown Tampa, Florida. The "host wing" for MacDill AFB is the 6th Air Refueling Wing (6 ARW), assi ...

, Florida in 1959, where it was inactivated when ADC concentrated its fighter weapons training at

Tyndall AFB Tyndall Air Force Base is a United States Air Force Base located east of Panama City, Florida. The base was named in honor of World War I pilot 1st Lt. Frank Benjamin Tyndall. The base operating unit and host wing is the 325th Fighter Wing (325 ...

, Florida.

History

Tow Target

The

was first activated during

, Territory of Hawaii. It provided gunnery training to fighter aircraft of

until being inactivated in the post war reduction of the United States military. For its "resourcefulness and efficiency" the unit was awarded the Meritorious Unit Commendation.AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits
Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 15 Jun 1971, p. 122 After April 1946, the squadron flew very few missions as it prepared for inactivation.Abstract, History 17th Tow Tgt Sq Apr–Sep 1946
(retrieved June 7, 2013) The squadron was again activated under Air Defense Command (ADC) at Vincent Air Force Base, Arizona in 1955 as an element of the 4750th Air Defense Group. At Vincent it flew aerial targets for the 4750th's mission of providing air-to-air gunnery training for pilots of

interceptor aircraft An interceptor aircraft, or simply interceptor, is a type of fighter aircraft designed specifically for the defensive interception role against an attacking enemy aircraft, particularly bombers and reconnaissance aircraft. Aircraft that are c ...

assigned to ADC. It earned an

Air Force Outstanding Unit Award The Air and Space Outstanding Unit Award (ASOUA) is one of the unit awards of the United States Air Force and United States Space Force. It was established in 1954 as the Air Force Outstanding Unit Award and was the first independent Air Force d ...

for its performance through 1957. When the group was discontinued in 1958, the 17th was reassigned directly to the 4750th Air Defense Wing. It moved with the

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is e ...

, Florida in 1959, where it was inactivated when ADC concentrated its fighter weapons training at

, Florida, where drone aircraft were used for

air-to-air rocket An air-to-air rocket or air interception rocket is an unguided projectile fired from aircraft to engage other flying targets. They were used briefly in World War I to engage enemy observation balloons and in and after World War II to engage enem ...

training in ADC's more advanced aircraft.

Radar Evaluation

4677th Defense System Evaluation Squadron

The predecessor of the 17th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron as a radar evaluation unit was the 4677th Radar Evaluation Flight (ECM), which was organized at

Hill AFB Hill Air Force Base is a major U.S. Air Force (USAF) base located in northern Utah, just south of the city of Ogden, and bordering the Cities of Layton, Clearfield, Riverdale, Roy, and Sunset with its largest border immediately adjacent t ...

, Utah in 1954.Cornett & Johnson, p. 112 The peacetime mission of the

flight Flight or flying is the process by which an object moves through a space without contacting any planetary surface, either within an atmosphere (i.e. air flight or aviation) or through the vacuum of outer space (i.e. spaceflight). This can be a ...

was to provide electronic countermeasure (ECM) training and evaluation services to the aircraft control and warning squadrons assigned to Air Defense Command (ADC). The squadron also had a wartime mission to provide jamming support for attack aircraft. In order to provide the necessary training, the flight was initially assigned T

B-29 Superfortress The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is an American four-engined propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to its predecessor, the B-17 F ...

es and some T B-25 Mitchells. The B-29s and B-25s carried an assortment of active and passive

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

jamming devices to provide the ECM training. A

Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (Royal Air Force, RAF, Royal Australian Air Force, RAAF, Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF, Royal New Zealand Air Force, RNZAF, and South African Air Force, SAAF designation) is a airlift, military transport ai ...

was used as a support aircraft to ferry personnel and equipment. During the period that the 4677th operated these aircraft, they provided ADC radar squadrons with thousands of hours of ECM training. On 8 July 1958 ADC redesignated the unit as the 4677th Radar Evaluation Squadron, ECM. By 1959 the

era aircraft were expensive to operate. The planes needed excessive amounts of

maintenance Maintenance may refer to: Biological science * Maintenance of an organism * Maintenance respiration Non-technical maintenance * Alimony, also called ''maintenance'' in British English * Champerty and maintenance, two related legal doct ...

to remain airworthy and were not supportable due to a lack of spare parts. The

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 ...

, originally purchased as a medium bomber for tactical

bombardment A bombardment is an attack by artillery fire or by dropping bombs from aircraft on fortifications, combatants, or towns and buildings. Prior to World War I, the term was only applied to the bombardment of defenseless or undefended objects, ...

was being phased out of tactical operations in favor of the

North American 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 ...

. Twelve of these aircraft were reassigned to the squadron. They were equipped with an assortment of ECM devices and redesignated as EB-57Es. These were used as faker target aircraft against

Convair F-102 Delta Dagger The Convair F-102 Delta Dagger was an American interceptor aircraft designed and manufactured by Convair. Built as part of the backbone of the United States Air Force's air defenses in the late 1950s, it entered service in 1956. Its main purpos ...

and

Convair F-106 Delta Dart The Convair F-106 Delta Dart was the primary all-weather interceptor aircraft of the United States Air Force from the 1960s through to the 1980s. Designed as the so-called "Ultimate Interceptor", it proved to be the last specialist interceptor i ...

interceptors. The squadron also participated in numerous training exercises such as Feudal Indian, Vigilant Overview, and Feudal Keynote. The unit also worked in conjunction with the

Semi Automatic Ground Environment The Semi-Automatic Ground Environment (SAGE) was a system of large computers and associated networking equipment that coordinated data from many radar sites and processed it to produce a single unified image of the airspace over a wide area. SA ...

(SAGE) DC-20 Direction Center at Malmstrom. The SAGE building was built for $6 million in the late 1950s for the automation of air defense and direction of interceptors against unknown aircraft. Recognizing that its mission now included the evaluation of automated defense systems, the unit was renamed the 4677th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron in 1960. The squadron was twice awarded with AFOUAs for its performance of this mission.AFP900-2, p. 547AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits, Vol II
Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 30 Sep 1976 , p. 119 By 1974, ADC had inactivated the rest of its flying radar evaluation units and wanted to replace the 4677th, which was a Major Command controlled (MAJCON) unit with and Air Force controlled (AFCON) squadron, whose history could be continued if it were inactivated. As a result, the 4677th was inactivated and the 17th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron was activated in its place. The continuity between the units was shown when the 17th decided to retain the 4677th's patch, changing only the number in the scroll. The squadron remained active until 1979 when it was inactivated as part of the reduced need for aerial evaluation of military radars as the Joint Surveillance System utilizing radars shared with the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

began to replace military radars.

Lineage

17th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron * Constituted as the 17th Tow Target Squadron ''ca''. 10 November 1943 : Activated on 4 December 1943 : Inactivated ''ca''. 30 September 1946 : Activated on 8 January 1955 : Inactivated on 15 June 1960 : Redesignated as the 17th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron 8 March 1974 : Activated on 1 July 1974 : Inactivated on 13 July 1979 4677th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron * Designated and organized as 4677th Radar Evaluation Flight (ECM) on 18 March 1954 : Redesignated 4677th Radar Evaluation Squadron, ECM on 8 July 1958 : Redesignated 4677th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron on 1 January 1960 : Inactivated on 1 July 1974

Assignments

17th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron *

, 4 December 1943 *

VII Fighter Command The VII Fighter Command was a command and control organization of the United States Army Air Forces. Its last assignment was with Far East Air Forces. The Headquarters were based at several locations with forward command moving with the campaign ...

, 1944 * 7th Fighter Wing, April 1944 * Air Control Group, 7th Fighter Wing (Provisional), September 1944 * 7th Fighter Wing, September 1944 – ''ca''. 30 September 1946 * 4750th Air Defense Group, 8 January 1955 * 4750th Air Defense Wing, 1 October 1958 – 15 June 1960 * 24th Air Division, 1 July 1974 – 13 July 1979 4677th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron *

Central Air Defense Force The Central Air Defense Force (CADF) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command being stationed at Richards-Gebaur Air Force Base, Missouri. It was inactivated on July 1, 1960. History ...

, 18 March 1954 *

29th Air Division The 29th Air Division (29th AD) is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Command, being stationed at Duluth International Airport, Minnesota. It was inactivated on 15 November 1969. History ...

, 1 January 1960 *

28th Air Division The 28th Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with Air Defense Tactical Air Command at Tinker Air Force Base, Oklahoma. It was inactivated on 29 May 1992. History Established in December ...

, 1 July 1961 *

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 ...

, 1 April 1966 *

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 ...

, 15 September 1969 * Aerospace Defense Command, 15 November 1969 * 24th Air Division, 2 October 1972 – 1 July 1974

Stations

17th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron * Wheeler Field, 4 December 1943 – ''ca''. 30 September 1946 * Vincent AFB, Arizona, 8 January 1955 * MacDill AFB, Florida, 11 June 1959 – 15 June 1960 * Malmstrom AFB, Montana. 1 July 1974 – 13 July 1979 4677th Defense Systems Evaluation Squadron * Hill AFB, Utah, 18 March 1954 * Malmstrom AFB, Montana, 31 August 1972 – 1 July 1974

Aircraft

* Consolidated B-24 Liberator, 1944Abstract, History 17th Tow Tgt Sq Aug 1944
(retrieved June 7, 2013) * T

, 1954–1959 * T B-25 Mitchell, 1954–1959 * B-57B (later EB-57E) Canberra, 1959–1974; 1974–1979

Awards

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * *
AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits
Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 15 Jun 1971
AF Pamphlet 900-2, Unit Decorations, Awards and Campaign Participation Credits, Vol II
Department of the Air Force, Washington, DC, 30 Sep 1976
Malmstrom AFB History

Air Force Historical Research Agency Factsheet, 24th Air Division

External links

Great Falls Tribune.com: ''25 years after NORAD, Great Falls back on radar'', By Eric Newhouse, Tribune Projects Editor, June 29, 2008
{{Aerospace Defense Command, state=collapsed 0017 Military units and formations established in 1943 Military units and formations established in 1954 1943 establishments in Hawaii 1979 disestablishments in Montana