The 4
e Escadre de Chasse
4e EC or 4th Fighter Wing (french:
4e Escadre de Chasse) is a fighter unit (french: unité de chasse) formation of the
French Air and Space Force
The French Air and Space Force (AAE) (french: Armée de l'air et de l'espace, ) is the air and space force of the French Armed Forces. It was the first military aviation force in history, formed in 1909 as the , a service arm of the French Army; ...
. The unit was initially created on May 1, 1944 then dissolved on September 1, 1993 with the disappearing of the Escadre echelon from the French Air and Space Force.
The 4th Fighter Wing was reformed on an Aerial Base on August 26, 2015.
History
The 4
e ''Escadre de Chasse'' was formed at Alto,
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 ...
on May 1, 1944, and initially was composed of a single group (
''Groupe de Chasse'' II/5 (GC II/5) La Fayette), equipped with 15
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-bombe ...
s, being joined by
''Groupe de Chasse'' II/3 (GC II/3) Dauphiné on 8 June 1944. The wing was deployed on fighter-bomber missions over Italy from May to August 1944, and from June began to supplement these missions with operations over France. In September, following the
Allied invasion of Southern France the previous month, the wing moved to mainland France. It was joined by a third group,
''Groupe de Chasse'' III/3 (GC III/3) Ardennes at the end of the year.
The 4
e Escadre de Chasse left the FATac on September 1, 1991 to be attached to the
Strategic Air Forces Command
The Strategic Air Forces (FAS) (french: Commandement des Forces Aériennes Stratégiques (CFAS)) is a command of the French Air and Space Force. It was created on January 14, 1964, and directs France's nuclear bombardment force.
The headquarters ...
(FAS).
Composition since 2015
![RafaleBGascogne](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5d/RafaleBGascogne.jpg)
The 4
e Escadre de Chasse
4e EC was reformed in 2015 with the following squadrons:
*
Escadron de Chasse 1/4 Gascogne, EC 1/4 Gascogne
*
Escadron de Chasse 2/4 La Fayette, EC 2/4 La Fayette
*
Escadron de Transformation Rafale 3/4 Aquitaine, ETR 3/4 Aquitaine
*
Escadron de Soutien Technique Aéronautique 15/004 Haute-Marne An ''escadron'', in French-speaking countries, may refer to:
* Squadron (army)
* Squadron (aviation)
* Squadron (naval)
* In military aviation, the equivalent of a:
** Wing (military aviation unit)
In military aviation, a wing is a unit of ...
, ESTA 15/004 Haute-Marne
On June 24, 2016, a ceremony celebrated the departure of the 1/7 Provence towards an Aerial Base in the
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...
and the arrival of
Escadron de Chasse 3/30 Lorraine
The ''Escadron de Chasse 3/30 Lorraine'' ("fighter Squadron 3/30 Lorraine") is a fighter Squadron of the French Air and Space Force (''Armée de l'air et de l'espace'') located at BA 118 Mont-de-Marsan Air Base which flies the Dassault Rafale C. ...
to Saint Dizier.
The
EC 3/30 Lorraine moved to Mont-de-Marsan that summer. Nevertheless, the latter is not part of the 4
e Escadre de Chasse 4
e EC, however, constitutes the
30e EC.
Historical Escadrons/Squadrons
Ardennes
* Fighter Group (french: Groupe de Chasse) - Groupe de Chasse III/3 Ardennes (from October 31, 1944 until March 1, 1946)
* Fighter Squadron (french: Escadron de Chasse) -
Escadron de Chasse 4/4 Ardennes (EC 4/4 Ardennes) (from January 1, 1950 until October 1, 1950), known as
Escadron de Chasse 3/3 Ardennes
Escadron de Chasse 3/3 Ardennes (Fighter Squadron 3/3 Ardennes) is a French Air and Space Force (Armée de l'air et de l'espace) fighter squadron currently stationed at BA 133 Nancy – Ochey Air Base which flies the Dassault Mirage 2000D.
See ...
at the corps of the
3e Escadre de Chasse (3
e EC) at an Aerial Base.
Dauphiné
* Fighter Group - Groupe de Chasse II/3 Dauphiné (from May 1, 1944 until July 1, 1947)
* Fighter Group - Groupe de Chasse I/4 Dauphiné (from July 1, 1947 until November 1, 1949)
*
Escadron de Chasse 1/4 Dauphiné (from November 1, 1949 until August 26, 1993)
Flandres
* Escadron de Chasse 3/4 Flandres (from January 1, 1950 until November 1, 1957)
La Fayette
![DH100lafayetteweb](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/07/DH100lafayetteweb.jpg)
*Groupe de Chasse II/5 La Fayette (from May 1, 1944 until July 1, 1947)
*Groupe de Chasse II/4 La Fayette (from July 1, 1947 until November 1, 1949)
*
Escadron de chasse 2/4 La Fayette (from November 1, 1949 until August 26, 1993)
Limousin
*Escadron de Chasse 3/4 Limousin (from August 1, 1989 until August 26, 1993)
Navarre
*Groupe de Chasse I/4 Navarre (from May 1, 1944 until December 7, 1994)
EALA
During the
Algerian War
The Algerian War, also known as the Algerian Revolution or the Algerian War of Independence,( ar, الثورة الجزائرية '; '' ber, Tagrawla Tadzayrit''; french: Guerre d'Algérie or ') and sometimes in Algeria as the War of 1 November ...
, three Light Support Escadrilles Aviation units (french: Escadrilles d'Aviation Légère d'Appui, (EALA)) were patronized by the
4e Escadre de Chasse :
* EALA 5/70 (from July 1, 1956 until June 30, 1957), re-designated EALA 17/72 (from July 1, 1957 until November 30, 1959)
* EALA 7/70 (from March 1, 1956 until June 30, 1957), re-designated EALA 18/72 (from July 1, 1957 November 30, 1959)
* EALA 3/4 (from December 1, 1959 until March 30, 1962)
Base
* Alto, Corsica (1944)
* Ambérieu (1944-1945)
* Luxeuil (1944-1945)
* Coblence then Mayence (from August 29, 1945 until August 19, 1947)
* Indochina (Hanoi, Gia Lam and Don Hoi) (from August 19, 1947 until August 26, 1948)
* Aerial Base in Germany (from August 26, 1948 until March 30, 1954)
* Aerial Base at Bône (from July 1, 1956 until November 30, 1959) (EALA 5/70, then EALA 17/72)
* Aerial Base at Oued Hamimin (from March 1, 1956 until November 30, 1959) (EALA 7/70 then EALA 8/72)
* Aerial Base at Telergma (from December 1, 1959 until March 30, 1962) (EALA 3/4)
* Aerial Base in Germany (from April 1, 1954 until June 5, 1961)
* Aerial Base (from June 6, 1961 until August 26, 1993)
* Aerial Base (from August 1, 1989 until August 26, 1993) (for the 3/4 Limousin)
* Aerial Base (August 26, 2015 – present)
Equipment
*
P-47D (from May 1, 1944 until December 1949)
* Supermarine
Spitfire Mk.IX (from September 1947 until August 1948)
* De Havilland
Vampire
A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...
(from October 1949 until 1953)
* Dassault
Ouragan (from July 1954 until 1957)
* Republic
F-84F (from May 1957 until 1966)
* North American
T-6G (from March 1, 1956 until February 1961) (
* North American
T-28
The T-28 was a Soviet Union, Soviet multi-turreted medium tank. The prototype was completed in 1931, and production began in late 1932. It was an infantry tank, infantry support tank intended to break through fortified defences. The T-28 was de ...
(from February 1961 until March 30, 1962)
* Dassault
Mirage IIIE
The Dassault Mirage III () is a family of single/dual-seat, single-engine, fighter aircraft developed and manufactured by French aircraft company Dassault Aviation. It was the first Western European combat aircraft to exceed Mach 2 in horizonta ...
(from October 1966 until November 1, 1988)
* Dassault
Mirage 2000N
The Dassault Mirage 2000N is a variant of the Mirage 2000 designed for nuclear strike. It formed the core of the French air-based strategic nuclear deterrent. The Mirage 2000D is its conventional attack counterpart.
Development
The Mirage ...
(since March 31, 1988)
* Dassault
Rafale B/C (since August 26, 2015)
See also
*
Major (France)
() in France, is a senior superior military rank (french: grade militaire) across various military and security institutions with history dating back well beyond the 18th century.
Typically, the contemporary rank of Major is situated differen ...
*
Chief of Staff of the French Air Force
*
List of Escadres of the French Air Force
*
List of aircraft carriers of France
The following is a list of aircraft carriers of France. Fifteen aircraft carriers have served the navy or been proposed since the 1910s.
As of 2022, one French carrier—'' Charles de Gaulle'' (R91)—remains in service of the French government.
...
*
Submarine forces (France)
References
Notes
*
* {{cite magazine , last=Lefèbvre , first=Jean-Michel , title=4
e Escadre de Chasse (3) , magazine=L'album du fanatique de l'Aviation , date=October 1973 , issue=48 , pages=10–15 , language=fr , ref={{harvid, Lefèbvre October 1973
Military units and formations of the French Air and Space Force
Fighter aircraft units and formations
Military units and formations established in 1944
Military units and formations established in 2015