469th Flying Training Squadron
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The 469th Flying Training Squadron is part of the
80th Flying Training Wing The 80th Flying Training Wing is a wing of the United States Air Force based out of Sheppard Air Force Base in Wichita Falls, Texas. The 80th FTW is home of the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training (ENJJPT) Program. ENJJPT, established in the spi ...
and is based at
Sheppard Air Force Base Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the largest training base and most diversified in Air Educati ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
.


History


World War II

Established as a B-24 Liberator heavy bomb squadron in 1942. Mission was as an Operational Training Unit (OTU) under Second Air Force training B-24 replacement pilots and aircrew. Inactivated in 1944 when B-24 Liberator crew training was ended.


Korean War era

Reactivated in 1952 as an Air Defense Command Fighter-Interceptor squadron during the Korean War. Squadron initially absorbed personnel, aircraft and equipment of several National Guard fighter-interceptor squadrons when they were relieved from active federal service. Provided Air Defense over Eastern Tennessee, specifically over the Atomic Energy Commission Oak Ridge facilities and numerous Aluminum production facilities in the Knoxville area. Converted to F-86s in 1953 and was operationally ready by July 1953. Utilized all major modifications of the F-86, including the "L" model. Participated in numerous actual and simulated exercises to test alert status and combat readiness until inactivation in 1958.


Vietnam service

Activated again in 1962 as a Tactical Air Command fighter squadron at George AFB, California. Equipped with F-105 Thunderchiefs, but remained unmanned from July 1962 through June 1963. Operational in February 1964, temporarily deployed overseas from November 1964 to March 1965, first to Yokota AB, Japan, to augment the
41st Air Division The 41st Air Division is an inactive United States Air Force unit. Its last assignment was with Fifth Air Force at Yokota Air Base, Japan. It was inactivated on 15 January 1968. History "The 41st Air Division was organized, administered, equipp ...
, and then to Kadena AB, Okinawa, in support of the 18th Tactical Fighter Wing. Reassigned in November 1965 permanently to Thailand, where it prepared for combat fighter operations at Korat RTAFB. Engaged in combat operations over Indochina from November 1965 until inactivated in October 1972, flying F-105s and, after 1968, it flew F-4s. By January 1969, proliferating antiaircraft defenses in the Barrel Roll area in the Kingdom of Laos were making operations ever riskier for Slow FACs such as the Raven FACs. The concept of stationing FACs at the same base with their strike aircraft was bruited. Volunteers from the 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron were approved for Fast FAC duty under the call sign "Tiger" in February. The inertial guidance systems in their fresh
F-4E Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bo ...
s would prove consequential for piloting and target location in an environment largely lacking in aerial navigation aids, especially after the 1 March loss of the only
TACAN A tactical air navigation system, commonly referred to by the acronym TACAN, is a navigation system used by military aircraft. It provides the user with bearing and distance (slant-range or hypotenuse) to a ground or ship-borne station. It is a mor ...
site in northern Laos. On 17 March, the volunteer FACs began supplying the necessary tactical air power for General Vang Pao's
Hmong Hmong may refer to: * Hmong people, an ethnic group living mainly in Southwest China, Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand * Hmong cuisine * Hmong customs and culture ** Hmong music ** Hmong textile art * Hmong language, a continuum of closely related to ...
guerrillas to sweep through
Operation Raindance Operation Raindance was a military operation of the Laotian Civil War, staged from 17 March to 7 April 1969. It was launched by the U.S. Air Force (USAF) in support of Hmong guerrillas raised by the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). As the guerri ...
. In April, the "Tigers" were considered for night FAC duties, but rejected. By July, the "Tiger" FACs were so immersed in directing close air support, they were allotted four sorties per day. Between July and September 1969, the "Tigers" were credited with 34 enemy killed by air, 12 antiaircraft sites destroyed, 246 interdictory road cuts of enemy supply lines, 15 enemy supply trucks destroyed, 403 structures destroyed, 360 fires caused by explosions, and 681 secondary explosions of munitions and fuel. They accomplished this during 182 FAC missions, during which they directed 2,004 air strikes. In turn, the "Tigers" suffered five F-4E's severely damaged by enemy fire.Schlight, pp. 26 – 29


21st century

The 469th Flying Training Squadron was reactivated in April 2009 as part of the 80th Flying Training Wing to conduct undergraduate flying training for EURO-NATO pilot candidates. The 469 Flying Training Squadron is composed of approximately 60 multinational personnel representing 13 signatory NATO nations supporting Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training. The squadron employs 46 T-38 aircraft flying over 11,500 training sorties and 13,000 hours while providing undergraduate, pilot instructor and continuation training for over 200 student pilots and instructor trainees annually.


Lineage

; 469th Bombardment Squadron * Constituted as the 469th Bombardment Squadron on 1 July 1942 : Activated 15 July 1942 : Inactivated 1 April 1944 * Consolidated with the 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron as the 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron on 19 September 1985 ; 469th Flying Training Squadron * Constituted as the 469th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron on 10 October 1952 : Activated on 1 December 1952 : Inactivated 8 January 1958 * Redesignated 469th Tactical Fighter Squadron and activated on 13 April 1962 (not organized) : Organized on 8 July 1962 : Inactivated 31 October 1972 * Consolidated with the 469th Bombardment Squadron on 19 September 1985 * Redesignated 469th Flying Training Squadron on 25 February 2009 * Activated on 10 April 2009


Assignments

* 333d Bombardment Group, 15 July 1942 – 1 April 1944 *
516th Air Defense Group The 516th Air Defense Group is a disbanded United States Air Force organization. Its last assignment was with the 35th Air Division at McGhee Tyson Airport, Tennessee. It was inactivated on 18 August 1955. The group was originally activated as a ...
, 13 April 1952 * 355th Fighter Group, 18 August 1955 – 8 January 1958 * Tactical Air Command, 13 April 1962 (not organized) *
355th Tactical Fighter Wing 355th may refer to: Aviation * 355th Fighter Squadron, an inactive United States Air Force unit *355th Fighter Wing 355th may refer to: Aviation *355th Fighter Squadron, an inactive United States Air Force unit *355th Fighter Wing, a United States ...
, 8 July 1962 – 8 November 1965 * 6234th Tactical Fighter Wing, 8 November 1965 *
388th Tactical Fighter Wing The 388th Fighter Wing (388FW) is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Combat Command Fifteenth Air Force. The unit is stationed at Hill Air Force Base, Utah. Units 388th Operations Group (388 OG) *4th Fighter Squadron (4 FS) : ...
, 8 April 1966 – 31 October 1972 * 80th Operations Group, 20 April 2009 – present


Stations

*
Topeka Army Air Field Topeka Regional Airport , formerly known as Forbes Field, is a joint civil-military public airport owned by the Metropolitan Topeka Airport Authority in Shawnee County, Kansas, seven miles south of downtown Topeka, the capital city of Kansas. The ...
, Kansas, 15 July 1942 *
Dalhart Army Air Field Dalhart Army Air Base is a former World War II military airfield complex near the city of Dalhart, Texas. It operated three training sites for the United States Army Air Forces from 1943 until 1945. The majority of the namesake city of Dalhart, ...
, Texas, 22 February 1943 – 1 April 1944 *
McGhee Tyson Air Force Base McGhee Tyson Air National Guard Base is a joint military facility located at McGhee Tyson Airport. It is located approximately 10 miles (16 km) south of the central business district of Knoxville, near Alcoa, in Blount County, Tennessee, ...
, Tennessee, 13 April 1952 – 8 January 1958 *
George Air Force Base George Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located within the city limits, 8 miles northwest, of central Victorville, California, about 75 miles northeast of Los Angeles, California. Established by the United States Army Air C ...
, California, 13 April 1962 *
McConnell Air Force Base McConnell Air Force Base is a United States Air Force base located four miles (6 km) southeast of the central business district of Wichita, a city in Sedgwick County, Kansas, United States., effective 2007-12-20 The airbase was named in ...
, Kansas, 21 July 1964 – October 1965 *
Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base Korat Royal Thai Air Force Base is a base of the Royal Thai Air Force (RTAF) in northeast Thailand, approximately 200 km (125 mi) northeast of Bangkok and about 4 km (2.5 mi) south of the centre of the city of Nakhon Ratcha ...
, Thailand, 8 November 1965 – 31 October 1972 *
Sheppard Air Force Base Sheppard Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located north of the central business district of Wichita Falls, in Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the largest training base and most diversified in Air Educati ...
, Texas, 10 April 2009 – present


Aircraft

* Consolidated B-24 Liberator, 1942–1944 * Republic F-47 Thunderbolt, 1952 * North American F-86D Sabre, 1953–1958 *
Republic F-105 Thunderchief The Republic F-105 Thunderchief is an American supersonic fighter-bomber that served with the United States Air Force from 1958 to 1984. Capable of Mach 2, it conducted the majority of strike bombing missions during the early years of the Viet ...
, 1962–1968 *
McDonnell F-4 Phantom II The McDonnell Douglas F-4 Phantom II is an American tandem two-seat, twin-engine, all-weather, long-range supersonic jet interceptor and fighter-bomber originally developed by McDonnell Aircraft for the United States Navy.Swanborough and Bow ...
, 1968–1972 * Northrop T-38C Talon, 2009–present


References

; Notes


Bibliography

* * * * . * . *


External links

{{Aerospace Defense Command Military units and formations in Texas 0469