The 597th Bombardment Squadron is an inactive United States Air Force unit. It was activated at MacDill Field, Florida in April 1943. After training in the United States, it transferred 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 ...

, where it was a component of IX Bomber Command. The squadron served in combat from April 1944 until the end of World War II, earning 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 ...

for an attack on

Ediger-Eller Ediger-Eller is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Cochem-Zell district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Cochem, whos ...

, Germany, in December 1944 during the Battle of the Bulge. Following V-E Day the squadron remained in France until December 1945, when it returned to the United States and was inactivated at Camp Shanks in January 1946.

History

The squadron was established at MacDill Field, Florida in April 1943 as one of the original squadrons of the

397th Bombardment Group 397th may refer to: *397th Bombardment Squadron The 7th Reconnaissance Squadron is a squadron of the United States Air Force. It is assigned to the 69th Reconnaissance Group and is stationed at Naval Air Station Sigonella, Sicily, Italy. The ...

, a

B-26 Marauder The Martin B-26 Marauder is an American twin-engined medium bomber that saw extensive service during World War II. The B-26 was built at two locations: Baltimore, Maryland, and Omaha, Nebraska, by the Glenn L. Martin Company. First used in t ...

medium bomber group.Maurer, ''Combat Units'', pp. 283–284 It drew its initial

cadre Cadre may refer to: *Cadre (military), a group of officers or NCOs around whom a unit is formed, or a training staff *Cadre (politics), a politically controlled appointment to an institution in order to circumvent the state and bring control to th ...

from the

21st Bombardment Group 021 is: * in Brazil, the telephone area code for the city of Rio de Janeiro and surrounding cities ( Greater Rio de Janeiro) * in China, the telephone area code for the city of Shanghai. * in Indonesia, the area code for the city of Jakarta and s ...

. The squadron trained under Third Air Force at stations in the southeastern United States. After completing its training by participating in the Tennessee Maneuvers, the squadron departed

Hunter Field Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart located in Hinesville, Georgia. Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet (3,468 m) long and an Airpor ...

, Georgia for the

on 14 March 1944. The squadron was temporarily stationed at

RAF Gosfield Royal Air Force Gosfield or more simply RAF Gosfield is a former Royal Air Force station in Essex, England. The airfield is located approximately north of Braintree; about north-northeast of London Opened in 1943, it was used by both th ...

upon its arrival in England in early April 1944. On the 15th of the month, its parent group displaced the

363d Fighter Group 363rd or 363d may refer to: * 363d Expeditionary Operations Group, inactive United States Air Force unit * 363d Bombardment Squadron or 19th Antisubmarine Squadron, inactive United States Air Force unit * 363d Fighter Squadron or 164th Airlift Squa ...

RAF Rivenhall Royal Air Force Rivenhall or more simply RAF Rivenhall is a former Royal Air Force station located in Essex, England. The airfield is located approximately south-southeast of Braintree, Essex, England. Opened in 1942, it was used by both ...

and flew its first combat mission five days later. In preparation for

Operation Overlord Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allies of World War II, Allied operation that launched the successful invasion of German-occupied Western Front (World War II), Western Europe during World War II. The operat ...

, the invasion of Normandy, the squadron participated in Operation Crossbow, attacking V-1 flying bomb launch pads. It also struck bridges, coastal defenses,

marshalling yard A classification yard (American and Canadian English (Canadian National Railway use)), marshalling yard (British, Hong Kong, Indian, Australian, and Canadian English (Canadian Pacific Railway use)) or shunting yard (Central Europe) is a railway ya ...

s and airfields in northern France. On

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on Tuesday, 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during World War II. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as D ...

the squadron attacked strong points and bombed

fuel dump Fuel dumping (or a fuel jettison) is a procedure used by aircraft in certain emergency situations before a return to the airport shortly after takeoff, or before landing short of the intended destination (emergency landing) to reduce the aircra ...

s and other objectives to support ground forces throughout the Normandy Campaign. In July 1944, the squadron participated in Operation Cobra, attacking German forces near Saint Lo, France, during the Allied breakout there. In August, the squadron moved from England to

Gorges Airfield Gorges Airfield is an abandoned World War II military airfield, which is located near the commune of Gorges in the Manche region of northern France. Located just outside Gorges (likely to the east or southeast), the United States Army Air Force ...

, an

Advanced Landing Ground Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) were temporary advance airfields constructed by the Allies during World War II during the liberation of Europe. They were built in the UK prior to the invasion and thereafter in northwest Europe from 6 June 19 ...

in France. From there it attacked naval targets at Saint Malo and Brest. Once on the Continent, the squadron made frequent moves forward as the Allied forces advanced during the

Northern France Campaign The Allied advance from Paris to the Rhine, also known as the Siegfried Line campaign, was a phase in the Western European campaign of World War II. This phase spans from the end of the Battle of Normandy, or Operation Overlord, (25 August 1944 ...

. By September the squadron began flying missions into Germany, attacking depots and defended areas. During the Battle of the Bulge, the squadron struck enemy lines of communications. On 23 December 1944 the unit severed a railway bridge at

, Germany, despite heavy flak and fighter opposition from the Luftwaffe. For this action it was awarded a

. The squadron continued to fly missions to support the Allied drive into Germany until 20 April 1945, exactly one year after its first combat mission, having completed 239 combat missions. After V-E Day the squadron returned to its former base at Peronne Airfield, France, and remained there until December, when it returned to the United States. Upon arrival at Camp Shanks, New York in early January 1946, the squadron was inactivated.

Lineage

* Constituted as the 597th Bombardment Squadron (Medium) on 20 March 1943 : Activated on 20 April 1943 * Redesignated 597th Bombardment Squadron, Medium c. April 1944 : Inactivated on 5 January 1946

Assignments

* 397th Bombardment Group, 20 April 1943 – 5 January 1946

Stations

* MacDill Field, Florida, 20 April 1943 * Avon Park Army Air Field, Florida, 14 October 1943 *

, Georgia, 2 November 1943 – 14 March 1944 * RAF Gosfield (Station 154),Station number in Anderson, p. 22 England, 5 April 1944 * RAF Rivenhall (Station 168), England, 15 April 1944 * RAF Hurn (AAF-492), England, 5 August 1944 * Gorges Airfield (A-26), France, 31 August 1944 * Dreux/Vernouillet Airfield (A-41), France, c. 15 September 1944 * Peronne Airfield (A-72),Station number in Johnson, p. 21 France, c. 7 October 1944 *

Venlo Airfield Royal Air Force Brüggen, more commonly known as RAF Brüggen, in Germany was a major station of the Royal Air Force until 15 June 2001. It was situated next to the village of Elmpt, approximately west of Düsseldorf on the Dutch-German bo ...

(Y-55),Station number in Johnson, p. 30 Netherlands, 25 April 1945 * Peronne Airfield (A-72), France, 31 May – c. December 1945 * Camp Shanks, New York, 4–5 January 1946

Aircraft

, 1943–1945

Awards and campaigns

References

Notes

; Explanatory notes ; Citations

Bibliography

* * * * * {{USAAF 3d Air Force World War II Bombardment squadrons of the United States Army Air Forces Military units and formations established in 1943