The 49th Fighter Training Squadron is part of the 14th Flying Training Wing based at

Columbus Air Force Base Columbus Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located in Columbus, Mississippi. The host unit at Columbus AFB is the 14th Flying Training Wing (14 FTW), which is a part of Air Education and Training Command (AETC). The residenti ...

, Mississippi. It operates

T-38 Talon The Northrop T-38 Talon is a two-seat, twinjet supersonic jet trainer. It was the world's first, and the most produced, supersonic trainer. The T-38 remains in service in several air forces. The United States Air Force (USAF) operates the most ...

aircraft conducting flight training. The squadron was first activated as the 49th Pursuit Squadron in 1941 during the expansion of the United States military that preceded

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 opposin ...

. Immediately after the

attack on Pearl Harbor The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

, the squadron flew

air defense Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...

patrols off the southern Pacific coast. In 1942 it was redesignated the 49th Fighter Squadron and deployed to England, but a few months later the squadron moved to the

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 forc ...

. The squadron earned a

Distinguished Unit Citation The Presidential Unit Citation (PUC), originally called the Distinguished Unit Citation, is awarded to units of the uniformed services of the United States, and those of allied countries, for extraordinary heroism in action against an armed enem ...

in 1944 and was inactivated in 1945. The squadron was activated again at

Dow Field Bangor Air National Guard Base is a United States Air National Guard base. Created in 1927 as the commercial Godfrey Field, the airfield was taken over by the U.S. Army just before World War II and renamed Godfrey Army Airfield and later Dow Arm ...

, Maine as one of the first units of

Air Defense Command Aerospace Defense Command was a major command (military formation), 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 est ...

(ADC). It converted to

Republic F-84 Thunderjet The Republic F-84 Thunderjet was an American turbojet fighter-bomber aircraft. Originating as a 1944 United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) proposal for a "day fighter", the F-84 first flew in 1946. Although it entered service in 1947, the Thu ...

s, being one of the first squadrons to do so. The squadron was inactivated in 1949. In 1952 the squadron, now designated the 49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, was activated to replace an

Air National Guard The Air National Guard (ANG), also known as the Air Guard, is a federal military reserve force of the United States Air Force, as well as the air militia of each U.S. state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the ter ...

squadron that was being released from active duty at Dow. For the next thirty-five years the unit carried out the

mission at Dow,

Hanscom Field Laurence G. Hanscom Field , commonly known as Hanscom Field, is a public use airport operated by the Massachusetts Port Authority, located outside Boston in Bedford, Massachusetts, United States. Hanscom is mainly a general aviation airport, ...

, and

Griffiss Air Force Base Griffiss Air Force Base is a former United States Air Force installation in the northeastern United States, located in Central New York state at Rome, about northwest of Utica. Missions included fighter interceptors, electronic research, i ...

, upgrading its aircraft until equipping with the

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 ...

, which it flew for almost twenty years. The squadron was the last to fly that plane, inactivating in 1987 as the Air National Guard took over air defense mission. The unit was reactivated in 1990 as the 49th Flying Training Squadron at

. Mississippi. It conducted the advanced phase of undergraduate pilot training and basic procedures and techniques of fighter employment since then except for a brief period when it was inactive in 1992–1993. In 2003 its name was changed to 49th Fighter Training Squadron to reflect this mission.

Mission

The 49th Fighter Training Squadron conducts Introduction to Fighter Fundamentals flying training for Air Force and international

pilots An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators, because they a ...

and

weapon systems officer A Weapon Systems Officer (WSO), nicknamed "Wizzo", is an air flight officer directly involved in all air operations and weapon systems of a military aircraft. Historically, aircrew duties in military aircraft were highly specialised and rigi ...

s. It flies over 2,400 hours annually. Its mission is to develop the ability, proficiency, confidence, discipline, judgment,

situational awareness Situational awareness or situation awareness (SA) is the perception of environmental elements and events with respect to time or space, the comprehension of their meaning, and the projection of their future status. An alternative definition is tha ...

and airmanship of future fighter wingmen. In addition, unit members deploy to support fighter syllabus and operational training requirements for

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 moveme ...

and

dissimilar air combat training Dissimilar air combat training (DACT) was introduced as a formal part of US air combat training after disappointing aerial combat exchange rates in the Vietnam War. Traditionally, pilots would undertake air combat training against similar aircra ...

History

World War II

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 in early 1941 at Hamilton Field, California as the 49th Pursuit SquadronMaurer, ''Combat Squadrons'', pp. 213–214 one of the original three squadrons of the 14th Pursuit Group.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 57–58 The squadron trained with

Republic P-43 Lancer The Republic P-43 Lancer was a single-engine, all-metal, low-wing monoplane fighter aircraft built by Republic, first delivered to the United States Army Air Corps in 1940. A proposed development was the P-44 Rocket. While not a particularly ou ...

s until it was equipped with early model

Lockheed P-38 Lightning The Lockheed P-38 Lightning is an American single-seat, twin piston-engined fighter aircraft that was used during World War II. Developed for the United States Army Air Corps by the Lockheed Corporation, the P-38 incorporated a distinctive twi ...

s. After the

Pearl Harbor Attack The attack on Pearl HarborAlso known as the Battle of Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike by the Imperial Japanese Navy Air Service upon the United States against the naval base at Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Territory of Hawaii, j ...

the squadron deployed to San Diego Municipal Airport where it flew

patrols for a week before returning to

March Field March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the second of seven months to have a length of 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of Ma ...

later in the month. In August 1942 the squadron deployed to 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 flew escort missions for

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Relatively fast and high-flying for a bomber of its era, the B-17 was used primarily in the European Theater ...

and

Consolidated B-24 Liberator The Consolidated B-24 Liberator is an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and some initial production aircraft were laid down as export models des ...

heavy bomber Heavy bombers are bomber aircraft capable of delivering the largest payload of air-to-ground weaponry (usually bombs) and longest range (takeoff to landing) of their era. Archetypal heavy bombers have therefore usually been among the larges ...

s as part of

VIII Fighter Command The VIII Fighter Command was a United States Army Air Forces unit of command above the wings and below the numbered air force. Its primary mission was command of fighter operations within the Eighth Air Force. In the World War II European Thea ...

until November. 14thfg-p38-northafrica-1943

The 49th was sent to

North Africa North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in ...

in late 1942 as part of the

Operation Torch Operation Torch (8 November 1942 – Run for Tunis, 16 November 1942) was an Allies of World War II, Allied invasion of French North Africa during the Second World War. Torch was a compromise operation that met the British objective of secu ...

invasion forces, taking up station in

Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Algiers , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , relig ...

. The unit was reassigned to

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 U ...

and flew both fighter escort missions for the B-17s operating from Algeria, as well as tactical

interdiction Interdiction is a military term for the act of delaying, disrupting, or destroying enemy forces or supplies en route to the battle area. A distinction is often made between strategic and tactical interdiction. The former refers to operations whose ...

strikes on enemy

targets of opportunity A target of opportunity is a target "visible to a surface or air sensor or observer, which is within range of available weapons and against which fire has not been scheduled or requested." A target of opportunity comes in two forms; "unplanned" and ...

in Algeria and Tunisia during the North African Campaign. The 49th flew

strafing Strafing is the military practice of attacking ground targets from low-flying aircraft using aircraft-mounted automatic weapons. Less commonly, the term is used by extension to describe high-speed firing runs by any land or naval craft such ...

and

reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enemy forces, terrain, and other activities. Examples of reconnaissance include patrolling by troops (skirmisher ...

missions until January 1943, when the unit was withdrawn from combat and some aircraft and personnel were assigned to other units. In May, it resumed operations. Following the German defeat and withdrawal from North Africa the squadron flew

dive bombing A dive bomber is a bomber aircraft that dives directly at its targets in order to provide greater accuracy for the bomb it drops. Diving towards the target simplifies the bomb's trajectory and allows the pilot to keep visual contact throughou ...

attacks during the assault on

Pantelleria Pantelleria (; Sicilian: ''Pantiddirìa'', Maltese: ''Pantellerija'' or ''Qawsra''), the ancient Cossyra or Cossura, is an Italian island and comune in the Strait of Sicily in the Mediterranean Sea, southwest of Sicily and east of the Tunis ...

. It helped prepare for and support

Operation Husky Operation or Operations may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity * Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory * ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Man ...

, the Allied invasion of Sicily, and

Operation Avalanche Operation Avalanche was the codename for the Allied landings near the port of Salerno, executed on 9 September 1943, part of the Allied invasion of Italy during World War II. The Italians withdrew from the war the day before the invasion, but ...

, the invasion of Italy. It engaged primarily in escort operations after November 1943, flying missions to cover bombers on long-range missions attacking strategic objectives in Italy, France, Germany, Czechoslovakia, Austria, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Rumania and Bulgaria. The squadron received a

for its actions on 2 April 1944 when it beat off attacks by enemy

fighter aircraft Fighter aircraft are fixed-wing military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat. In military conflict, the role of fighter aircraft is to establish air superiority of the battlespace. Domination of the airspace above a battlefield ...

, enabling the bombers it covered to strike a

ball-bearing A ball bearing is a type of rolling-element bearing that uses ball (bearing), balls to maintain the separation between the bearing (mechanical), bearing race (bearing), races. The purpose of a ball bearing is to reduce rotational friction and ...

factory in Austria. The squadron also provided support for

operations. It deployed to

Corsica Corsica ( , Upper , Southern ; it, Corsica; ; french: Corse ; lij, Còrsega; sc, Còssiga) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is the fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of ...

in August 1944 to support Allied Forces in

Operation Dragoon Operation Dragoon (initially Operation Anvil) was the code name for the landing operation of the Allied invasion of Provence (Southern France) on 15August 1944. Despite initially designed to be executed in conjunction with Operation Overlord, th ...

, the invasion of Southern France. The unit continued to fly long range missions to strafe and dive bomb targets in an arc from France to the Balkan Peninsula until the

surrender of Germany The German Instrument of Surrender (german: Bedingungslose Kapitulation der Wehrmacht, lit=Unconditional Capitulation of the "Wehrmacht"; russian: Акт о капитуляции Германии, Akt o kapitulyatsii Germanii, lit=Act of capit ...

in May 1945. The squadron was inactivated in Italy in September of that year.

Cold War air defense

Early operations

49th Fighter Squadron Republic F-84B-21-RE Thunderjet 46-548

The squadron was once more activated in the US on 20 November 1946 at

, Maine as part of the

First Air Force The First Air Force (Air Forces Northern; 1 AF-AFNORTH) is a numbered air force of the United States Air Force Air Combat Command (ACC). It is headquartered at Tyndall Air Force Base, Florida. Its primary mission is the air defense of the Co ...

(ADC). The squadron was one of the first operational units assigned to ADC. The 49th was initially equipped with

Republic P-47N Thunderbolt The P-47 Thunderbolt was a World War II fighter aircraft built by Republic Aviation from 1941 to 1945. Early designs XP-47 (AP-10) In response to a USAAC requirement for a new fighter aircraft, Republic Aviation engineer Alexander Kartveli p ...

s and later with first generation P-84B Thunderjets. It was responsible for air defense of the Northeastern United States. In 1947, the units's parent group became the first in the AAF to equip with the P-84. The 37th's mission was daylight and fair weather defense of northeast United States from New York City north to the Maine/New Brunswick border, shared with 52d Fighter Group (All-Weather) at

Mitchel Air Force Base Mitchel Air Force Base also known as Mitchel Field, was a United States Air Force base located on the Hempstead Plains of Long Island, New York, United States. Established in 1918 as Hazelhurst Aviation Field #2, the facility was renamed later ...

, New York which flew

North American F-82 Twin Mustang The North American F-82 Twin Mustang is the last American piston-engined fighter ordered into production by the United States Air Force. Based on the North American P-51 Mustang, the F-82 was originally designed as a long-range escort fighter ...

s for night and inclement weather operations. The squadron was inactivated on 2 October 1949.

Air defense of the northeast

49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron North American F-86F-25-NH Sabre 51-13241

The squadron was redesignated the 49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron and reactivated on 1 November 1952 and was once again stationed at Dow Air Force Base, where it was assigned to the 4711th Defense Wing. At Dow the squadron assumed the mission, personnel, and

Lockheed F-80C Shooting Star The Lockheed P-80 Shooting Star was the first jet fighter used operationally by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) during World War II. Designed and built by Lockheed in 1943 and delivered just 143 days from the start of design, prod ...

s of the 132d Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, which was simultaneously inactivated.Cornett & Johnson, p. 116Cornett & Johnson, p. 123 The 132d was a

Maine Air National Guard The Maine Air National Guard (ME ANG) is the aerial militia of the State of Maine, United States of America. It is, along with the Maine Army National Guard, an element of the Maine National Guard. As state militia units, the units in the Maine ...

unit that had been mobilized in February 1951 for the

Korean War , date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...

. Upon inactivation the 132d was returned to the control of the Guard. Five months after activation, the squadron upgraded to

North American F-86F Sabre The North American F-86 Sabre, sometimes called the Sabrejet, is a transonic jet fighter aircraft. Produced by North American Aviation, the Sabre is best known as the United States' first swept-wing fighter that could counter the swept-wing Sov ...

aircraft. Both the F-80C and F-86F were day

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 cap ...

, but the F-86 was faster and more agile. In March 1954, however the squadron converted to Mighty Mouse rocket armed and airborne intercept

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, w ...

equipped

F-86D Sabre The North American F-86D/K/L Sabre (initially known as the YF-95 and widely known informally as the "Sabre Dog",) was an American transonic jet fighter aircraft. Developed for the United States Air Force in the late 1940s, it was an interceptor ...

s, giving it an all weather capability. In November 1955, the squadron and its F-86Ds moved to

near

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

where it was reassigned to the 4707th Air Defense Wing. In October 1956 the squadron re-equipped with its third version of the F-86, the F-86L. The F-86L incorporated

data link A data link is the means of connecting one location to another for the purpose of transmitting and receiving digital information (data communication). It can also refer to a set of electronics assemblies, consisting of a transmitter and a recei ...

, which enabled it to communicate directly with

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. S ...

direction centers without the need for voice communications. The unit operated the F-86L for the remainder of its tenure at Hanscom. 49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron F-101B 59-0420 1966

49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron F-101B 59-0420 1966

In October 1959 the 49th and the 465th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron at

, New York traded places, with each squadron assuming the mission, aircraft and personnel of the other. At Griffiss, the 49th joined the 27th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron in the 4727th Air Defense Group until October, when the 27th moved and there was no longer a need for a group

headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

for ADC fighter squadrons so the 4727th was discontinued. The 49th initially operated

Northrop F-89J Scorpion The Northrop F-89 Scorpion was an American all-weather, twin-engined interceptor aircraft built during the 1950s, the first jet-powered aircraft designed for that role from the outset to enter service. Though its straight wings limited its pe ...

s, which were armed with the

AIR-2 Genie The Douglas AIR-2 Genie (previous designation MB-1) was an unguided air-to-air rocket with a 1.5 kt W25 nuclear warhead. It was deployed by the United States Air Force (USAF 1957–1985) and Canada (Royal Canadian Air Force 1965–68, Air Com ...

, a nuclear capable

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 ...

. However, by December 1959 the squadron had begun to upgrade to supersonic

McDonnell F-101B Voodoo The McDonnell F-101 Voodoo is a supersonic jet fighter which served the United States Air Force (USAF) and the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Initially designed by McDonnell Aircraft Corporation as a long-range bomber escort (known as a ...

s, and the F-101F operational and conversion trainer. The two-seat trainer version was equipped with dual controls, but carried the same AIR-2 armament as the F-101B and was combat capable. F-106A 49FIS BuckleyAFB 1970

The squadron operated Voodoos until September 1968, the aircraft being passed along to the

as the squadron re-equipped with

s. There were a total of forty-six F-106's assigned to the 49th at Griffiss between 30 September 1968 until its inactivation on 30 September 1987. F-106s 59-0062 and 59-0136 were the last two Delta Darts in active-duty USAF service, being sent to the

Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Center The 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group (309th AMARG),Offici ...

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 on 9 July 1987. The squadron was initially programmed to receive F-15 Eagles to be used in the interceptor mission, however it was decided to inactivate the unit as part of the transfer of the air defense mission in the United States to the

. The 49th Fighter Interceptor Squadron was the last active USAF F-106 unit.

Pilot training

The unit was reactivated in 1990 as the 49th Flying Training Squadron at

. Mississippi. It conducted the advanced phase of undergraduate pilot training for two years before inactivating two years later. It was activated again in 1994 and since then has taught basic procedures and techniques of fighter employment. It moved to

Moody Air Force Base Moody Air Force Base (AFB) is a United States Air Force installation near Valdosta, Georgia. Geography The base is in northeastern Lowndes County, Georgia, with the eastern border of the base following the Lanier County line. Georgia State Rout ...

, Georgia in 2000, but returned to Columbus in 2007. In 2003 its name was changed to 49th Fighter Training Squadron to reflect this mission.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 49th Pursuit Squadron (Fighter) on 20 November 1940 : Activated on 15 January 1941 : Redesignated 49th Fighter Squadron (Twin Engine) on 15 May 1942 : Redesignated 49th Fighter Squadron, Two Engine on 28 February 1944 : Inactivated on 9 September 1945 * Redesignated 49th Fighter Squadron, Jet Propelled and activated, on 20 November 1946 : Redesignated 49th Fighter Squadron, Jet on 26 July 1948 : Inactivated on 2 October 1949 * Redesignated 49th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron on 11 September 1952 : Activated on 1 November 1952 : Inactivated on 7 July 1987 * Redesignated 49th Flying Training Squadron on 11 May 1990 : Activated on 25 June 1990 : Inactivated on 18 September 1992 * Activated on 1 July 1993 : Redesignated: 49th Fighter Training Squadron on 19 May 2003Lineage, including assignments, stations and aircraft in Robertson, 49 Fighter Training Squadron Factsheet

Assignments

* 14th Pursuit Group (later 14th Fighter Group): 15 January 1941 – 9 September 1945 * 14th Fighter Group: 20 November 1946 – 2 October 1949 * 4711th Defense Wing (later 4711th Air Defense Wing): 1 November 1952 * 4707th Air Defense Wing: 5 November 1955 * 32d Air Division: 16 January 1956 *

Boston Air Defense Sector The Boston Air Defense Sector (BADS) is an inactive United States Air Force Air Defense Command (ADC) organization. Its last assignment was with the ADC 26th Air Division at Hancock Field, New York. History BADS was established in 1956 at Ste ...

: 1 August 1958 * 4727th Air Defense Group: 1 July 1959 * Syracuse Air Defense Sector: 15 October 1959 * Boston Air Defense Sector: 4 September 1963 * 35th Air Division: 1 April 1966 * 21st Air Division: 19 November 1969 * 24th Air Division: 23 September 1983 – 7 July 1987 * 14th Flying Training Wing 25 June 1990 * 14th Operations Group, 15 December 1991 – 18 September 1992 * 14th Operations Group, 1 July 1993 *

479th Flying Training Group The 479th Flying Training Group is a United States Air Force unit, stationed at Naval Air Station Pensacola. A component of Air Education and Training Command, the group was activated on 2 October 2009. The current commander of the 479th Flying ...

: 10 October 2000 * 14th Flying Training Wing: 10 May 2007 – present

Stations

* Hamilton Field, California, 15 January 1941 * March Field, California, 10 June 1941 (operated From:

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

, California 7–12 December 1941) * Hamilton Field, California, 9 May 1942 – 16 July 1942 *

RAF Atcham Royal Air Force Atcham or more simply RAF Atcham is a former Royal Air Force station located east of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England, on the north eastern boundary of Attingham Park. Initially built for RAF Fighter Command, during the Secon ...

(Station 342),Station number in Anderson. England, 18 August 1942 – 28 October 1942 *

Tafaraoui Airfield Oran Tafaraoui Airport is a joint civil/military airport in Oran Province, Algeria . History During World War II, it was a primary mission objective of the United States Army 34th Infantry Division during the Allied Operation Torch landings on 8 ...

, Algeria, 15 November 1942 *

Youks-les-Bains Airfield Youks-les-Bains Airfield is an abandoned military airfield in Algeria, located about 20 km northwest of Tebessa. The airfield today consists of several agricultural fields, with the faint remains of its main runway, parts of a taxiway and ...

, Algeria, 22 November 1942 * Berteaux Airfield, Algeria, 9 January 1943 *

Mediouna Airfield Mediouna may refer to: *Mediouna, Algeria Mediouna is a town and commune in Relizane Province, Algeria ) , image_map = Algeria (centered orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , ...

, French Morocco, 5 March 1943 * Telergma Airfield, Algeria, 5 May 1943 *

El Bathan Airfield El Bathan Airfield is an abandoned military airfield in Ariana province, Tunisia, located approximately 15 km south of El Battan, and 30 km west of Tunis. It is now an agricultural area, with little or no visible remains. A light sca ...

, Tunisia, 3 June 1943 *

Sainte Marie du Zit Airfield Sainte Marie du Zit Airfield is an abandoned military airfield in Zaghwan province, Tunisia, located about 3 km northeast of Sainte-Marie du Zit and 17 km east-northeast of Zaghouan, and 50 km south of Tunis. History The airfi ...

, Tunisia, 25 July 1943 *

Triolo Airfield The Foggia Airfield Complex was a series of World War II military airfields located within a radius of Foggia, in the Province of Foggia, Italy. The airfields were used by the United States Army Air Force Fifteenth Air Force as part of the str ...

, Italy, 12 December 1943 (operated From:

10–21 August 1944) * Lesina Airfield, Italy, September 1945 – 9 September 1945 * Dow Field (later Dow Air Force Base), Maine, 20 November 1946 – 2 October 1949 * Dow Air Force Base, Maine, 1 November 1952 * Hanscom Field, Massachusetts, 5 November 1955 * Griffiss Air Force Base, New York, 1 July 1959 – 7 July 1987 * Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, 25 June 1990 – 18 September 1992 * Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, 1 July 1993 * Moody Air Force Base, Georgia, 31 December 2000 * Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, 10 May 2007 – present)

Aircraft

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 ...

(1941) *

P-66 Vanguard The Vultee P-66 Vanguard was a United States Army Air Forces fighter aircraft. It was initially ordered by Sweden, but by the time the aircraft were ready for delivery in 1941, the United States would not allow them to be exported, designating ...

(1941) * Lockheed P-38 Lightning (1941–1945) * Republic P-47 Thunderbolt (1946–1949) * Republic F-84 Thunderjet (1947–1949) * Lockheed F-80C Shooting Star (1952–1953) * North American F-86F Sabre (1953–1954) * North American F-86D Sabre (1954–1956) * North American F-86L Sabre (1956–1959) *

Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star The Lockheed T-33 Shooting Star (or T-Bird) is an American subsonic jet trainer. It was produced by Lockheed and made its first flight in 1948. The T-33 was developed from the Lockheed P-80/F-80 starting as TP-80C/TF-80C in development, then d ...

(1952–1953, 1956–1986) * Northrop F-89J Scorpion (1959) * McDonnell F-101B Voodoo (1959–1968) * McDonnell F-101F Voodoo (1959–1968) *

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 ...

(1968–1987) *

(1990–1992, 2000–present) * AT-38 Talon (1993–2000)

Awards and campaigns

; Po Valley; Air Combat, EAME Theater.

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * * * * *

External links

49th Fighter Squadron Association home page
Retrieved 24 December 2013 * Kessell, Doug
WWII air squadron revisits memories Former Dow AFB site of reunion
Bangor Daily News Archive. Retrieved 24 December 2013 {{Aerospace Defense Command Military units and formations in Mississippi 0049 049